


Friends First

by Myth_is_a_Mirror



Category: Lore Olympus (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Awkward First Times, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Lovers, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Flirting, Jealousy, Loss of Virginity, Love Triangle, Oral Sex, Porn with Feelings, Teasing, Vaginal Fingering
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-04
Updated: 2020-08-22
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:00:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 42,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22562146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Myth_is_a_Mirror/pseuds/Myth_is_a_Mirror
Summary: *Lore Olympus College AU (young gods)*Persephone has been flirting with her super hot TA, Hades, despite the teasing interference of her lab partner, Ares. One day, every carefully constructed fantasy falls apart when she learns the truth: Hades has a girlfriend. At the bad advice of "If you can't beat 'em, make 'em jealous," she and Ares set out to show Hades what he's missing. A love triangle and complicated matters of the heart ensue as these college kids try to figure out what it is they really want from each other and themselves.Persephone: Inexperienced but brilliant freshman (Ch. 1, 4, 7 point of view)Ares: Star jock with a soft heart for women (Ch. 2, 5, 8 point of view)Hades: Nerdy lab instructor anxious about the future (Ch. 3, 6, 9 point of view)
Relationships: Ares/Persephone (Lore Olympus), Hades/Persephone (Lore Olympus)
Comments: 241
Kudos: 427





	1. Kind of a Genius

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Song on Repeat: ["Feels"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6US7RN74D0k) by Kiiara

The entrance to the locker room slams, and I thud against it. The clanging sound echoes in the cavernous, empty space. Hugging myself tight, I tremble. Alone. Always alone.

_Screw this school and screw older men who lead me on like I’m a...a stupid virgin._

I growl in exasperation, realizing I am a virgin and probably stupid to boot. This is all my fault for letting my imagination run wild.

Freshman year in college started off so well. My biology TA was tall, dark blue, and handsome. We had chemistry (didn’t we?), but I just found out he’s had a girlfriend this whole time! For weeks I flirted with him, badly it seemed. To add insult to injury, I know the girl! The snarky junior is a fashion major in my business class - 6’ tall and rail thin. The opposite of me in every way - science geek, short, and chubby.

“Young lady, where are youuuuu?” The familiar sing-song voice only irritates me further. _Ares. Ugh. So embarrassing._ My dumb lab partner instigated the whole awkward interaction only moments ago.

* * *

_“Hey dude,” Ares elbowed our TA in the ribs. Hades' tall frame leaned over the table to check my calculations, pushing black rimmed glasses up his nose. His fresh piney scent was like a drug to my system. But Ares always broke the spell with his stupid, rumbling voice, “You and your girlfriend coming to my party this weekend?”_

_Girlfriend?! The word sent a hot, sharp pain through my stomach. Hades didn’t even have the decency to answer Ares’ question. His gaze snapped to me, mouth gaping like a fish. I couldn’t breathe and everything felt hot. The...the nerve of that two timing jerk to lead me along. Or was it...was it me that saw something that wasn’t there? It had to be._

_“I have to go to the bathroom,” I said and scrambled away just as Ares mentioned her name. Minthe._

* * *

At least I can catch my breath in here. I look at my watch. The class would end in...20 minutes. Gods, what a mess. Could I really hide in here like a coward?

“I can’t finish the exercise without my lab partner.” Ares’ voice is closer, just down the hall if I had to guess.

I wipe the angry tears from my eyes and sniff, tugging my skirt down. My fingers ghost over my peter pan collar just to make sure it's still buttoned all the way up to my throat. If only I could put a bag over my head to hide the stupid, dark blush I know must be mottling my cheeks and ears. I'd always worn emotions painfully obvious on my face.

“Persephone?” Ares voice is right at the door to my back, quiet, almost...tender. “Are you okay?”

I sigh and turn around, determined to face my childish naivety and its resulting humiliation. If I can get past him, the man who teases me about literally everything, I can make it back to class with my dignity intact. 

I fling open the door and lift my chin. “Do you always follow girls to the bathroom, you big boar?”

His worried expression morphs into a familiar, teasing smirk. “Only when they want to be followed.”

“Well I didn’t, so leave!” I move to close the door again. “I’ll be back in class in a minute.” My lower lip trembles and eyes begin to water just thinking about going back and seeing Hades again. Which would be worse - regret or complete obliviousness?

Ares slaps a large golden palm on the door and keeps it pressed open, a serious expression on his face. “I’m not leaving when I can see you’re upset.”

“Oh, and you know everything about what makes me upset, you big bully?” I push against his broad chest. “You’re my friend all of a sudden?”

“Of course I am.” He maneuvers inside the locker room and shuts the door quietly. Leaning against the wall a few feet away, he crosses his legs and folds his arms. 

Somehow his huge body seems less intimidating in that posture. Ares is a star athlete - rugby captain and a champion swimmer. Every girl in our small liberal arts college drools over him. I won’t deny the fact he’s attractive. It’s just...jocks never appealed to me. They’re too unattainable, never interested in my, shall we say, unconventional body type and quirky personality. As my lab partner these past couple months though, I've grown to see Ares as less of a local sports god and more of an annoying older brother. But could he also be a friend?

I collapse on the nearest bench and rub at my throbbing temples. “I won’t lie. I could use a friend.”

College is good, but exhausting. I'm just so busy all the time and still feel behind. My mom hates cell phones, so I can't talk to her whenever I want anymore. My roommate is a total badass, but her brother really creeps me out. And Hermes is sweet, but it's Hades that-

“Hades isn’t your friend.” Ares glares at me like he could read my thoughts.

“Yeah, I’m coming to see that.” I groan and slump forward. I realize in a flash that I’d pinned all my hopes of a real connection on Hades, my older TA with a hot girlfriend. “I’m pathetic.”

“Hey!” His voice turns sharp and he strides forward, dropping to one knee in front of me. “You’re the furthest thing from pathetic. You’re a fucking freshman in advanced molecular biology.”

His warm grip on my hands feels so good, just to be touched by someone. A tremulous smile tugs at my lips as I glance up. He smells kind of good too, like a clean sweat and something spicy I can't place. The mask of red around his eyes fades, and his tight expression turns soft at the edges.

“In fact, you’re kind of a genius.” His soft voice sounds nothing like the teasing one I'm used to. Is that a blush on his cheeks? _Wait...a genius?!_ I blink in shock, watching his face turn hard again. “I know a thing or two about assholes, little lady. Don’t let my cousin get under your skin.”

“Cousin?!” My voice squeaks on the end. Hades is his...his cousin?

“Yea, he’s a big dummy despite the book smarts. Not like you!” He grins and tugs me up, dragging me out of the locker room and down the hall. 

_Oh Gaia be merciful, we’re headed back to class. You can do this, Persephone! Keep it together._

Before opening the door to the lab, he looks back and winks. “What is it my ex-girlfriend always says?” Twisting the knob and pushing me forward, he leans next to my ear and whispers, “If you can’t beat ‘em, make ‘em jealous.”


	2. Brat Daddy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Song on Repeat: ["Adore You"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VF-r5TtlT9w) by Harry Styles

**ONE WEEK AGO**

I down another shot of whiskey and shake my head. Family functions are the worst. The three-tiered crystal stand full of shrimp is the only redeeming part. I pop another cocktail sauce-covered bite in my mouth and peer around the assembly.

Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus stand front and center beside Ouranos. The whole crew came to the royal estate near the mountains for grandpa’s early retirement party. The three oldest cousins, bright jewel colors, are always out in front. The family already treats them like the kings they will become one day, the chosen heirs to Ouranos’ three realms.

Me and my sisters - Athena and Hebe - stand on the sidelines. We serve as cupbearers or guards if we’re lucky to be noticed at all. The most thanks I get from gramps is when I patrol the realms as muscle to rough up folks who don’t pay on time. Ares, the god of war or the god of tax collecting? Ugh. Compared to Persephone, a farmer’s daughter, I still have major privilege. My apartment is paid for and we have a tight family network, even if a bunch of them are total dicks. 

I’m an outsider, never able to impress the elders no matter how many headlines I make in rugby or swimming. To them, I’m only good for what I was born to be - a warrior. It would have been easy to hate the three sons of Kronos if Hades hadn’t always been such a fucking decent guy. At least, until recently. The way he plays games with my new lab partner really grinds my gears. 

When everyone starts shouting along to karaoke, I find him on the balcony, fingers ghosting over a freshly bloomed white rose. The flowery scent hangs heavy in the air.

“Hades.” I lean against the railing with a sidelong glance in his direction.

“Ares.” He straightens and tugs at the lapels of his tailored jacket. “Nice night. You’re doing well in the biology exercises.”

Straight to the point, then. I quirk an eyebrow. “Mostly thanks to my sweet peach of a lab partner. Seems the goddess of spring knows a thing or two about science.”

“Yes, of course.” He coughs, lips pinched tight. “Persephone has an impressive intellect.”

“Stop jerking her around, Hades.” I stand and turn fully to him, crossing my arms. “Ask the freshman out, or cut it out.”

“Cut what out?” Hades hand slices through the air at nothing. “She’s not interested in me. She’s nice to everyone - personalized cookies, thank you notes for literally anything. She only tolerates me because I’m the TA.”

The personalized cookies really sent me. She’d decorated mine with a rugby stick which I promptly compared to a dick. Hades made the right move, clutching his heart and offering profuse thanks. She was a goner from then on.

I mock his voice in a whiny tone, “She’s nice to everyone. She only tolerates me.” I grab him by the collar and pull until I can feel his cool breath on my face. “Man to man, she’s into you. And if you don’t fucking act on it, I’ll end her misery. Ignorance is _not_ bliss, dude.”

Hades eyes narrow, red in an instant, and I can feel that cold, tightly leashed power roll off him in waves. “End her misery? What the fuck does that mean?” His grip on my forearm is painful, the conflict its own kind of intimacy. Finally, some emotion!

“Get off my brother, you bully!” Zeus rushes forward and pulls us apart. “You need me to put the beat down on this ingrate, bro?”

“No.” Hades tugs his brother to the side, but glares at me on a harsh whisper, “Don’t you fucking touch her!”

I grin. So he does care. 

I’ll give him another two class days. If he doesn’t fess up about his girlfriend or cut the cute guy act, well let’s just say, I’m not a man to make idle promises.

* * *

**PRESENT DAY**

_You and your girlfriend coming to my party this weekend?_

Yeah, it was a dick move, but it was also the truth. And when it comes to honesty or cowardice, I always choose honesty.

Hades paces at the back end of the room when we walk in. Brows sweating, twisting a handkerchief between his hands, his worry turns to anger directed straight at me. 

_You and your girlfriend coming to my party this weekend?_ I doubted my words as soon as I said them seeing the adorable pink freshman’s face fall. But it was the right move. Watching Persephone smile at him, clueless day after day, tore at my cold, dark heart. It’d been a week and Hades still hadn’t said shit. 

Oh, I’d seen him think about it. When she left class the other day, he walked fast behind her, but something stopped him and he turned away.

I hover over the little goddess, but she doesn’t seem to mind. Serves Hades right. She clearly needs a friend.

I smile at him. 

Despite his fierce expression, he’s a fucking coward for not stopping his shit or telling the truth. 

Hades doesn’t break eye contact, as though his fury at me is greater than his interest in her. If so, he’s a fool. Even though she isn’t an object to be fought over, my lizard brain and his are on the same page. It can’t be helped. 

_Mine, Mine -_ We both seemed to say as she and I circle back to our table. He walks up the opposite end to his desk, just staring me down. 

Persephone sits on the stool next to me. I set my chair to its lowest setting and slide my arm over her shoulders. When she doesn’t stiffen, I can’t help but smirk. It’s a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.

A student shuffles up to Hades with a question, and the tension between us breaks. 

I lean down and slide my cheek against her pink one. “You alright?”

“Fine, thank you.” She takes a shaking breath. “I-I’m glad I came back in. It was a stupid misunderstanding.”

My exhale is loud and growling to hear her so torn up over my dumb cousin. If I’m honest, I’m also annoyed at myself for doing it on purpose.

“Please forget what you saw in there.” She leans back to stare at me with a serious expression, “W-whatever you think is going on, it’s nothing. Really. My bad.”

“First, it wasn’t a _stupid misunderstanding_. Second, nothing is _your bad._ Third, don’t lie to me.” I hold her hands and raise my brows. “If you can be honest with anyone, be honest with me.” 

A long sigh shakes through her whole body, releasing tension she must’ve been holding tight this whole time. “Okay, Ares. Thanks for being a friend.”

 _A friend._ My chest tightens at the words like they’re a final judgement. _A friend._ If only she knew. As I lean down to her ear, my eyes meet Hades. The red has nearly swallowed his pupils and his knuckles are white where his fists rest on the table. 

I whisper, “If we play it cool, act real friendly, let’s see if we can motivate the dummy to finally drop his asshole girlfriend and make a move.”

“Y-you don’t mean…” The sensitive hint to her voice makes me even more determined to protect her fragile heart. She didn’t deserve to be jerked around.

“We’ll jerk _him_ around a little. Call it payback for flirting with you and not saying shit. I know he likes you, Persephone. I’m sure of it.”

Her gaze falls to Hades, and she gulps. “You said he wasn’t my friend.”

“Because he’s not. He wants to be a lot more than friends. I’m just not sure he deserves you.” I lean an elbow on the table and watch her. Every emotion - confusion, adoration, hurt - plays across her adorable face like a movie screen. “What do you see when you look at him right now? Is he calm and collected? Totally unaware of you?”

“No.” She chuckles, the sound like a sweet siren song. “He doesn’t look too happy.” Her smile falters and she whips to me. “I shouldn’t want him to be unhappy.”

“He doesn’t deserve to be happy.” I smile, all sharp teeth and flushed skin. “Anger is my specialty, and sometimes it’s warranted. You aren’t wrong to think he was flirting, but he was wrong for leading you on.”

“Leading me on…” Persephone bites at her lip and scribbles a squiggly doodle on their worksheet. “I don’t like playing games. I-I’m not very good at them.”

“You wear your heart on your sleeve, Angel.” I chuck her under the chin, and she grins at the endearment. “It’s what I like about you.”

That blush is real. I may not have her heart, but I sure as shit can get a response out of those dark, rosy cheeks. She feels safe with me, and after being the instigator of this whole mess, I’ll take it to soothe my own frayed nerves.

“Friends, right?” I ask, committed to the game, even if she isn’t. I want her to be happy, no matter what she chooses.

“And here I thought you were just a big brat.” 

When she puts her head on my shoulder, it’s like my chest breaks open. The yoke lifts. It’s a small shift, but I’m not who I was a moment ago, the facade others see. A new vulnerability wars within me. Anything seems possible, seems deserved, so long as I keep this goodhearted woman safe. Unharmed. 

The soft weight of her trust resting against me means more than it should. I know it’ll be nothing more than fake flirting, but I don’t care. It feels right.

Hades claps loudly, announcing in a booming voice to the class, “Back to work. No dawdling. Five minutes and your exercises are due.”

Desperate move, dude. I narrow my eyes at him.

I pick up Persephone’s phone and text my number, saving my name in her contacts.

“Hey!” She grabs it from me, and stares at the screen, shaking her head with a secret smile. 

We’re both typing, but I’m faster on the draw.

“How can someone be a brat and a daddy?” She peers up at me, a smile all the way at the corners of her eyes.

Well, if that doesn’t shock my socks off. Tonight is going very well.

“And what do you know of brats and daddies, young lady?”

She blushes a deeper shade than I’ve ever seen, turning back to scribble at our lab exercise. Genius unleashed, she writes a mile a minute, biting her lip and making silent calculations. I twirl a pen in my fingers and mean mug my cousin.

When the bell rings, she drops our work on Hades’ desk. Every movement is fluid and confident. He says something, but she doesn’t even pause. A quick turn has that schoolgirl skirt dancing at her knees. 

What a fucking cutie. I can watch her play it fast and loose all day long. Somehow, this side of her is more alluring than her tender vulnerability. She seems stronger.

“Seeya later, big guy.” She grabs her bag and sweeps out of the room. The heady scent of honeysuckle fades by the second.

Maybe it was stupid, but I give myself a little credit for the extra sparkle in her eye. Grinning like a fool, I head for the opposite end of the room. On my approach, Hades rises up, fists braced against the desktop. He looks for all the world like a fire breathing dragon trapped in the body of a blue nerd.

Knocking on the wood as I pass, I wink at him. “May the best god win.”


	3. The Deep End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to VesperNights for the beta read assist :)
> 
> Content notes: Brief moment of potential for domestic violence (does not happen) and description of anxiety & mild intrusive thoughts.
> 
> Song on Repeat: ["War of Hearts (Acoustic)"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5paJrsIkqg) by Ruelle

Chanel No. 5 permeates the air, and I could choke on it.

I enter Minthe’s workroom and walk to the end of the table where she drapes piles of shiny fabric on a dress form. My steps are quiet. She’s so easy to upset these days. 

Meeting Persephone was a summons, a hint of a future I hadn’t dared to dream of until the day I met her. In the weeks since, my fantasies always begin the same way. 

I place her palms on my cheeks and inhale her warm scent. Soft fingers snake across my scalp and pull me closer, so my face rests against the cushion of her chest. My hands hug around her waist and draw her closer, as close as I can get.

A finger snap cuts the daydream short. 

“What are you smiling about?” Minthe asks, eyes narrowed with suspicion, a pin stuck between her teeth.

I’m suddenly aware of how much she doesn’t like to see me happy. Since the first time we met for the fashion department’s year end showcase, she pokes and pokes and pokes. The arguments felt like passion, and sometimes they did turn into intimacy, rare and fleeting. Those moments felt like a treasure, but now I see them for what they were - dog treats meant to pacify me, keep me hungry for more. For something real.

I swallow. How to start this, the conversation I’ve been considering for months but can never seem to begin? I think of Ares on the balcony last week. Straight to the point, he’s always been blunt. I take a deep breath.

“It’s over, Minthe.”

She’d gone back to her work putting pins in the hourglass form. Her hands still, and she looks up at me. The sharp heat in her eyes makes me afraid to walk closer.

“What exactly is over?” Each word is precise. She stabs a pin in the dummy’s fabric shoulder and stalks toward me.

“Us.” Breathe in, breathe out. It’s all I can manage, tracking her unpredictable emotions before they lash out. “You don’t even like me.”

“What the fuck does that matter?” She sprints the last few feet, spittle flying. Just as her arm rears back to strike me, I grab it and push against her chest to stop her. She’s angry, but there’s something tender trying to break out and it confuses me as she screams, “Why don’t you love me anymore?” 

The shout echoing in my ears is too distracting to really focus on the words, so I growl and pin her arms in front of her with one hand and grip her chin. There. Now, I can think. It kills me a little that bound and defenseless she always calms so quickly. Like a hare in a trap, only her eyes move as her heartbeat flutters against my fingertips. _Why don’t you love me anymore?_

“Did we ever love each other?” My question is honest, more honest than I intended. 

“We’re good together.” Her voice is soft. Always hot and cold with her. I hate it.

“We look good together. That’s not the same thing.”

She’d tailored a suit for me for her fashion show. It was a beautiful dark grey and fit like a dream. Somehow, she wound her way into my life with the flurry of a dozen compliments and a hundred glancing barbs. Each kiss felt like an honor after enduring the disregard leading up to it. I grew to believe I deserved her treatment, that she was the best I could hope for. 

Her lip quivers, even though her forehead is lined with tension. She’s trying to stay angry. It’s her way.

“You said you’d buy me a designer bag.”

I close my eyes on an exhale. A fitting parting gift, something expensive and empty. “You’ll have it by tomorrow morning.”

Her eyes rove over me, calculating, trying to think of something to draw me back in, but I let go and walk away at a brisk pace, yelling over my shoulder. 

“Lose my number.”

My luxury condo is situated next to my brothers’ units with high coastal views. We call it the family ‘village’ where all the young cousins are given free room and board until we grow into our powers and our destinies.

The dark facade is familiar but devoid of any warmth. It isn’t until my key turns in the lock, and I hear the sound of my dogs' nails clattering across the floor that I finally heave a sigh of relief.

I’m home. Alone. Or as alone as one can be with a pack of animals. I get them all fresh dinner from the fridge I use specifically for their food, then set about to make a mushroom risotto and a medium-rare sirloin. Comfort food is sorely needed after today. Breaking up with Minthe was almost a relief. It’s imagining Persephone with my hulking cousin’s golden arm slung across her shoulders that almost makes me break the glass of water I’m holding. He’d smirked at me like a cat who got the cream. 

_May the best god win._

I have little chance against him, and it’s the honest truth. Ares has nearly every woman at college lusting after him. He’s on posters everywhere, and there are social media fan pages devoted to his various, manly body parts. It’s ridiculous and something I never desired...until now.

Knowing he is only a couple buildings over, in the same family complex, makes me feel like a chump for sitting here stewing instead of confronting him. But what would I fucking say? _You were right?_

The pups wrestle and play as I open the back door and take dinner outside. I sip red wine and stare at the early sunset over the ocean. Endless sparkling blue topped by a rainbow of pink. And pink just reminds me of her. The goddess of spring. My freshman student. Her 19 to my 25 doesn’t sound that inappropriate, but with my teaching position...gods, it feels like we are worlds apart.

Shame fills me, realizing my outcast cousin did the _right_ thing by telling the truth. He said I’d been leading her on, flirting with her. I guess I had been. I was just so out of practice with it, the whole idea she could be interested in me seemed an impossibility. Why is it so hard for me to see social interactions the way others do?

I know some of it is in the way I grew up. The first 16 years I spent hidden away in the Norse pantheon’s frozen landscape. My brothers and I have different mothers but the same tyrant father - an abuser we all fled. Zeus, Poseidon, and I met first as young teenagers after the death of Kronos. Ouranos offered us riches and his realms if we returned to Olympus and went to college. Well, the money was ours now that we’d all graduated. Yet each of us, in our own way, dragged our feet on really breaking out - undergrad, then graduate school, and now a PhD. Was pursuing a doctorate simply a fear of my darker destiny in the Underworld, or was I truly following my passion? 

After doing the dishes, I lie down in bed and buy Minthe the biggest, most expensive tote I can find. Better safe than sorry, I pay for overnight shipping. Three dogs surround me, with two smaller ones on top. Their warm, comforting weight is the best medicine, even if they aren’t normally allowed on the bed. This was an unusual and upsetting Wednesday, and I deserve a little self-care. 

My hand reaches for my smartphone, fingers practically itching to do what I imagined all day - find Persephone on social media. The first time I considered it, I called myself a creepy old man enough times that the thoughts died away. Today though, I have to know more about her. All the curiosity that bloomed in the last few weeks with her in my lab class, seemed to unleash from my brain in a storm. Are she and Ares friends? What is her life like? Is she close to Artemis? What did she enjoy doing? Most of all, I wanted to see her - the face that launched a thousand fantasies.

I don’t find her on Fatesbook, but Nymphstagram is another story, though it takes some digging. I’m not ashamed to say I find Ares’ profile and scroll through his likes until I find that pink smile that makes my heart beat like a drum.

I turn to my side in bed, eyes already drooping and sleepy and indulge my harmless crush. I click on her profile. In the lead photo, she wears a cowboy hat and a silly smile. The heat of a blush warms my cheeks. From just a picture? This is ridiculous.

I scroll through more photos, enraptured. Voyeuristic shame whispers in the back of my mind that it’s a violation to peek into her personal photos, captions, and comments. And yet, she seems happy, easy to friendship, and comfortable with physical affection. Of course she is. It’s just what I told Ares - she treats everyone with warmth and kindness. 

Seeing an old photo of her with a litter of puppies on her mother’s farm makes my chest ache with tenderness. I click on the photo and try to zoom in. It’s a shepherd of some kind, but...

_Tap tap._

My blood runs cold. I just liked a photo that's over two years old.

I groan loud enough it wakes two of the dogs, who peer at me with sleepy eyes. Petting their heads calms me a fraction. 

To be fair, she doesn’t post often, so I hadn’t realized how far back I had scrolled. _Oh Gaia, swallow me whole._ I was lurking. I knew it was wrong.

 _You know what, screw it!_ I want to be her friend, not a creepy almost-professor who likes her photos late at night. I hit the + _follow_ before I can talk myself out of it. 

On a loud exhale, I try and piece together my next move.

 _A message?_ Would a coy explanation for my ridiculous digital encouragement of an old photo be more embarrassing or less? I imagine what to say.

 _I just broke up with my girlfriend, and seeing you with a dog was the brightest spot in my day._ No - desperate and over the top.

 _My finger slipped._ No - strange and weirdly sexual.

How about the something closer to the truth? I type, _I hope this isn’t a weird question, but does your family raise Groenedael shepherds?_

It’s an admission to being a total dork, but at least it’s accurate to my train of thought. I stare at the unmoving screen - no notifications, no bubble to announce typing, just a bright blue light that seems to blind me the more I focus on it. Her lovely smile in the profile photo turns sinister, seems to laugh at me.

I swallow, click off the screen, and close my eyes to the darkness of the room. My furry family around me is the only grounding presence as my mind cycles with anxious thoughts, too fast to hear or make sense of. 

Breathing techniques worked before. I exhale all the old air in my body, all the way down to the pit of my stomach. The last bits of oxygen from this wretched day I push out of my lungs. Then, I breathe in. Rise...rise...rise, I count out in three seconds, then a longer exhale. Fall...fall...fall...fall. I repeat the method, the repetitious words of _rise_ and _fall_ crowd out the other thoughts. All I can do is breathe and keep myself alive for another moment. All I can do is breathe.

I fall into a dreamless sleep, because when the phone beeps, the dogs all snore heavily around me. The screen shows 3:56 am and two notifications - _KokoP_ _followed you back_ , and the preview to a new Nymphstagram message - _Well hello..._

I twist to my stomach, heart pounding like a racehorse, and unlock the phone with trembling fingers.

_Well hello to you too. They aren’t Grona-whatever dogs, I don’t think so. Mama calls them her wolf pack. A bunch of mutts, but I love them just the same ;)_

Did I sound like a snob who only likes purebreeds? Oh shit, why can’t I ever say the right thing? But wait...the winky face and cutesy greeting. She must not hate me that badly.

_Hello. My dogs are mostly mutts too. I suppose I was just curious as they are such beautiful creatures. I hope I didn’t bother you so late._

The unsaid question won’t leave my mind - why are you awake? She types for what seems like an hour but is probably only a couple minutes. The message in return is brief.

_You didn’t bother me._

Oh gods, the answer is _too_ brief. I didn’t phrase my previous message well at all, did I? Why can’t I get this right? Communication, especially digitally, always confuses me having grown up with little modern technology. Her answer repeats in my head but the opposite - _you bothered me, you bothered me, you bothered me._

I curl up and let the sick, tight feeling in my gut just exist for a moment, but only a moment. These dark thoughts can’t have me again, not after my crazy day. I stood up to Minthe, finally. I can put myself out there. Growling, I slide out of bed and pace at the glass wall overlooking the cloudless, starry night. 

_Can I call you?_

My brief question in response feels like I’ve laid my heart on a chopping block. Something happened in the classroom today. Ares isn’t an idiot. If anything, he has more sense with women than anyone else I know. She was hurt, and he comforted her. I hurt her, even if it was on accident.

Her reply comes quick.

_Not tonight...I should get back to bed._

Shot down, just as I expected, though the gentle mercy of _not tonight_ gives me unreasonable hope. I wish I could tell her I broke up with Minthe, ask her out right away, but the idea of even a friendship with her appeals to me too. She could be someone to chat with at the end of the day. And if she got to know me, if she found something worthwhile, perhaps I could push for more when the semester is over.

_Sweet dreams._

I send the last message and click off my phone, determined not to wait for a response. She needs sleep, but not me. 

Suddenly I feel alive, like I’m on a ship and the wind is blowing through my hair. I have no idea where I’m going, but it’s different than the day before. I’m different. I throw on my swim trunks and head to the shared outdoor pool. Diving in, the heavy cold water covers me completely. All sound aside from my living, beating heart drowns away. Every breath is measured. The darkness makes me new.

I’m not on a ship anymore. The choppy waters of a wild sea have me.

I’m in the deep end now.

*just for funsies*


	4. Tug of War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Songs on Repeat: ["S P A C E"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3Yhj7vIk1o) by Amber Marks and ["Mama Said"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqXdU1IK2JI) by Cat Clyde
> 
> Special thanks to Sophie for the beta read!!

“She’s trouble!” The wind stole Mama’s voice. She must’ve walked to the end of the barley field to get enough service to call. “Are you listening to me, Kore?”

“I’m not a little girl, mother!” I inhale a cleansing breath. The childhood name always rankles me. “Look, I don’t interact with Hera often. It would be super rude if she runs into me at school and finds out I’ve been here for months and never said hello. No one has ever accused me of being rude, and I’m not about to let my own aunt be the first.”

Using my elbow, I open the side entrance to the DSAC _(Divine Scholars Activity Center_ ) and wiggle through the doorway. A tupperware container full of lemon cupcakes balances precariously on top of two textbooks. I nearly trip as my backpack gets caught in the closing door. The darn thing is weighed down with lunch, more notebooks, and two changes of clothes.

“I got it, Angel!” Ares steadies me and opens the door. “Give me that bag. I told you to wait until I got the car parked.”

“Hold on, Mama.” I give him a sheepish smile and hand over the heavy bag. The books and tupperware alone make for a lighter load. I wouldn’t have so much stuff if Artemis hadn’t kicked the dishwasher for not working. Now, our apartment is flooded and we’re sleeping over with a friend. She had to deal with the damage and couldn’t drive me to school like usual.

The fleeting thought I could have asked Hades occurred to me, but...that was weird, right? Ares, on the other hand, was convenient. He’d already been texting me memes all night and day.

As we make our way through the dark side hallway of the student center, Mama’s voice crackles with static. “My little sister is dangerous, sweetheart.” I readjust the phone at my shoulder, as she continues, “You know I try to keep you out of these things.”

 _These things_ is code for _the family business_. My whole life, Mama sheltered me from it. But now, as an adult living on my own, I wonder if that was the right call. I know so little about my relatives, only that Grammy and my aunts are involved in stuff Mama wants nothing to do with.

“I heard you the first time.” The line cuts out briefly as I walk deeper into the stone and metal building, heels clicking on the tile floor. A sharp pinch on my ass has me jumping and I nearly roll my ankle. “OUCH!”

Whipping around, Ares just smirks and shrugs. 

“You better watch it, mister,” I whisper.

“Sweetheart, are you okay? Did someone hurt you? Give me names!” The goddess of the harvest is not a woman to mess with. I roll my eyes and tell a partial fib.

“I’m losing service. Can you text me?” I type out a quick rundown of my week and attach a selfie with my roommate’s cat. Mama can be annoying, but I miss her terribly. The tight weight in my chest eases a little each time we speak, even when it’s only a few minutes. “I love you, Mama.”

The line goes dead before she can reply. I huff and drop my things on a trophy display case, trying to catch my breath from the walk. Looking down I realize the heel of my shoe is cracked. _Nice...just great._ I have flats in my bag for tomorrow. It’s just not the grownup woman look I’m going for. Maybe I can fix the shoe with some glue. I think I have some in my bag somewhere.

Ares twists in front of me. I grab the bag from him and rifle through it. The main meeting area of the DSAC is just down the hall. It’s a space for students to mingle, eat, and host special events. I’m sure my aunt’s auditorium will be nearby, but the only banner reads “Science Fair.” I guess that explains the dozens of people setting up tables.

Ares stands between me and the source of light coming from the huge glass domed student area. For a second, I’m struck by his massive form and golden curls backlit by the sun. He really is beautiful and not just because of his physique. His smile is easy. He’s quick to conversation and more insightful than I’d realized.

“Lemme help you find your aunt.” He pulls out his phone, casting his face in a grey-blue light. “What’s her name?”

“Hera,” I answer, as a Nymphstagram notification pings. The preview shows blinding white teeth in a symmetrical smile with the caption, _@QueenBunny has arrived._ Perfect timing!

I’ve followed my young aunt on social media for awhile. Only five years older than me, Hera is like a queen at our small university, a grad student with everything going for her. One of her recent social media posts showed her prepping for the business school’s pitch competition this morning. The Olympus government and high profile consultancies would be in attendance looking for new interns and hires.

For too many weeks, I followed Mama’s advice and avoided Hera, even though my gut told me different. At the few family events I attended growing up, Hera was always kind to me. I imagined her as the older sister I never had, but with the distance and Mama’s disdain for the family, we never grew close.

“Hera Juno?” Ares looks up, a slow dawning grin on his face.

“You know her?” It’s probably a stupid question. She’s beautiful and popular. So is he.

“She’s like a mom to me!”

I tilt my head, blinking in confusion. “Mom?”

“She was my freshman orientation mentor.” He laughs and turns his phone around, showing a layout of the DSAC. “I found it. Auditorium One...brb.”

“Weirdo.” I shake my head at his use of chat lingo in spoken conversation and poke his chest. “Don’t make her mad! I haven’t seen her in years, and...and I can come to her. I just need to fix my shoe.”

“Don’t get your panties in a twist.” He leans forward with a wink. “Unless I can watch.”

“Oaf!” I laugh and punch his shoulder.

“Let your Ares take care of this. I’ll scope it out and come back...carry you to her like a knight in shining armor if I have to.” His chest puffs out, and he looks so proud I can’t help but smile. What a turnaround from yesterday. I thought of him as a bully, but it’s mostly just his immature sense of humor. He’s really kind. Almost...charming.

“Well go on!” I shoo him with one hand, while inspecting my cracked shoe. “Times-a-wasting.”

He opens the tupperware and a cupcake disappears down his gullet before I can stop him. Crumbs fall out of his mouth as he salutes. Striding toward the sunlit space ahead, he slows glaring to his left. 

I turn. My brain empties, then whirs back to life full of static.

A tall blue profile with a familiar aquiline nose comes out of the men’s room. His gaze narrows on Ares, mouth set in a tight line, before stopping and leaning against the wall. His shadow is larger than life, seeming to reach for me with its darkness. My heartbeat kicks into overdrive as I remember our brief chat last night. It didn’t feel professional or friendly. Seeing him again, it strikes me as the kind of late night conversation that turns into something more.

 _Sweet dreams._ Innocent enough words, but so sexy coming from him, like a promise of loving sentiment just out of reach. But it was the, _Can I call you?_ That really had me rattled all morning. What would he have said? When he asked it, my stomach dropped. I just...wasn’t ready to talk to him on the phone. It seemed too intimate a conversation to be had with the TA I’d lusted after for weeks, the man I just learned had a girlfriend.

Stock still, I realize I’ve been watching him clean his eyeglasses with a small cloth for who knows how long. My hand sits on top of a notebook, the sweaty palm leaving five little ovals in the cover. I pull away and tug at my skirt.

When I look back up, he puts his glasses back on and straightens his navy vest. He turns in my direction. A bright pink handkerchief peeks out of his pocket, triple folded in an intricate pattern. 

I try to back into the shadow of a nearby doorway, but he looks up. 

His eyes find me, magnets seeking their opposing polarity. He stops for the briefest moment, lips parted. Stepping again in my direction, his throat bobs on a swallow. Long fingers dance at his shirt collar before brushing down his shirt. There’s no lint or wrinkle. He’s perfect, always pulled together. Is he...nervous?

“Persephone.” His head ducks, eyes falling to the floor before locking back on me, somehow more devastating in their intensity. He stops only a step or two away, and the air feels charged. “Good morning.”

My jaw clenches. _Good morning_ isn’t supposed to be that sexy, I tell my stupid nipples, pebbling at just the sound of his voice. I rearrange my scarf over both shoulders to provide some coverage and take a deep breath, forming the courtesy smile I’m very good at.

“Good morning to you!”

“Is everything okay?” he asks, glancing over me with a furrowed brow.

My eyes dart around. Did I sound too cheery? I stare down at my clothes - a graphic tee from my favorite animated show, a knee length skirt, long socks, and tall boots. I run a hand down my lengthening hair. Are my braids messy?

“I-I didn’t mean you looked...It was j-just...umm...” He coughs, shuffling his feet. “You replied back to me so late. I was worried.”

“Late? You mean early?” I chuckle, surprised at his concern. Full of nervous energy after our brief chat, I baked instead of trying to sleep. Bringing sweets is a great way to make friends. “I’m still on farm time, and I wanted to try a new recipe.”

I gesture to the tupperware and study his long, angular face. His lips tilt up slightly at the yellow iced confections. Turning back, he watches me carefully, like I’m a puzzle. Gods, why are we so awkward? In class, conversation used to flow so naturally.

 _He has a girlfriend, that’s why,_ the daemon on my shoulder whispers. _He knows you have a crush on him, dummy._

“Why are you here?” I blurt out, then cringe. _He’s here for a snack. He works for the university. He’s meeting friends...his girlfriend._ A thousand reasons crowd my head.

“Science fair. Some of my students have projects. I’m not a real professor or anything, but I wanted to show my support.” His fingers card through his hair, and his bicep flexes, revealing a long, white scar. Looking at me, there’s a hint of red in his eyes. Is he closer now? He’s so tall and smells like a pine-scented candle. 

I lick my lips. _He's not a popsicle, Persephone. Get it together!_

“Science fair.” I blink and look at my books, straightening the stack to keep my hands busy. “I did one of those when I was in elementary school.”

“That’s the idea. Simplify the message.” His easy smile is devastating. “You’d be surprised how challenging students find it to condense a semester’s worth of research into one 3-panel poster and a table display.”

I remember back to the week we learned about his research. Putting all that knowledge and passion onto one poster does seem impossible. When he turned off the classroom lights, all the students gasped in wonder. 

“How does the god of the dead become an expert in bioluminescent animal life?” I ask.

He wipes his brow with the hot pink handkerchief. Is he sweating? “It started as simple curiosity. The animals I study fascinate me - glow worms, fireflies, jellyfish. There’s something magical about a creature in the dark who illuminates the world around them.”

I swallow. That shouldn’t have been as poetic as it sounded. His formal way of speaking and the humor and humility that couches every statement hits me straight in the heart. I’m in trouble. “Will you continue your work at the university or do field research?”

I remember that he’s supposed to move to the Underworld, and what I really wanted to ask was - Will you be here for my entire college career? _Please say yes. Please say yes._

“I doubt it. I’m supposed to be a king, if my grandfather has anything to say about it.” He sighs, then shakes his head. “Wait...that wasn't meant to sound like a complaint, or-or like I’m bragging.”

“I didn’t think that.” I lay my hand on his upper arm. His wide eyed look makes me wonder why this kind of friendly contact is unusual for him. I swallow. There’s so much about him I don’t know.

“It’s going to be really umm...isolating down there.” His body curls down, closer, and he plucks a tiny blue flower from my hair. Looking back at me, I see a reflection of my outline in his shining eyes. He’s a dark mirror of me. “Without the sun, I have to find a different kind of light.”

I want to press up on my tippy toes and kiss him so bad it hurts. This crush is overwhelming! My breath comes out in tiny pants, for fates sake. I can’t think straight.

“P!” Ares has me up and spinning before I can react. He holds me so tight, I’m breathless again for a different reason. The world blurs around us. All I can see is his smile splitting into a giant grin. He sticks out his tongue, and I can’t help but laugh. When he tickles my waist, I howl and kick. “Lemme grab your books. I know the way to go now.”

He completely ignores Hades, though my gaze can’t help but drift to our TA. I have to remember that. He’s our lab teacher. He has a _girlfriend_. Hades’ tight expression is unreadable.

“Wait...how’s your shoe?” Ares sets me down.

“Your shoe?” Hades drops to one knee and carefully pries the boot with a broken heel off my foot. His large hand almost completely wraps around my calf. Thank the gods I have socks on. I’m already blinking like a computer on the fritz from the intimate pose. His warm touch seeps through the fabric.

“I have flats,” I mumble and grab the handle of my bag. Before I can unzip it, I’m swept off my feet and into Ares’ arms. 

“It’s too damn dark in here. Let’s go to the main area.”

Hades is left with a single shoe and a murderous expression. When he looks at me, his gaze softens. “I’ll grab your stuff. Don’t worry.”

I feel like Alice in Wonderland. What potion did I drink? What secret tunnel did I fall through? I’m being carried bridal style into the busy student center by the star jock with my sexy TA acting as valet. Is there a man equivalent of catnip I rolled around in accidentally?

Ares drops me on top of one of the few empty square tables. We’re right next to several science fair setups. _Water Pollution Kills_ is the ominous title of the table in front of us.

Hades drops my shoe, bag, books, and cupcakes in the middle of the table. “What’s all this stuff for?” 

“I’m here to see my aunt at the business case competition, but most of this stuff is because our apartment flooded this morning.” They stand in front of me but refuse to acknowledge each other as I pry off my other shoe. “Artemis and I are staying over with Eros tonight.”

Hades coughs and Ares mouth curls up in a shit eating grin. 

“The god of sex?” they ask simultaneously, one with horror, one with amusement, both crossing their arms. They really do look related, though everything else is a study in opposites. Silly and Serious. Yellow and Blue. Hot and Cold.

“There’s no funny business. Eros is our friend!” I can feel the burning heat of a blush on my face. 

“Suuuuuuure.” Ares leans over and elbows me. “Can I come over for some _Netflix and chill_?”

“I don’t think I know what that means…” My eyes narrow on him. Modern phrasing still eludes me half the time having grown up with no TV or internet.

“Listen, Persephone...” Hades’ stern professor voice and hand cutting through the air has me turning to him on instinct, ready to obey. “My family’s complex has empty apartments. You and Artemis are welcome to stay there. Free of cha-”

“Oh no, no, no. No thank you.” I interrupt. _Handouts beget expectation_ , Mama always says. Gifts are one thing, but wading into a sticky situation with Hades of all people is not wise. Even I know that. “It’s best if we stay with Eros like we planned. I’m sure it’ll all be fine tomorrow. I just need to find a ride to his place later.”

“Allow m-” Hades begins.

“I’ll take you!” Ares interrupts. Reaching a rough, calloused hand toward me, he pulls one of my dark pink curls. I smile when it bounces in front of my face. In that moment, my new friend, mischievous brat that he is, does seem to be the safer choice.

“Thanks, Ares. I appreciate it! I’m done with class at four o-clock.”

“Meet me at the pool. I have practice just after that.” He kisses my cheek, setting off tingles. When he hugs my neck, I grip his forearm.

Hades glares at him. This is...this is what we planned, right? Make him jealous? But it feels so wrong on so many different levels. If Hades cares for me, I don’t want to play games with that, even if he has a girlfriend. Plus, I actually enjoy spending time with Ares. Besides all the bluster and fake flirting, I'm so comfortable with him. Even his teasing shows me how to be feisty. He makes me feel...strong, oddly enough. 

Hades turns to leave.

“Wait!” I reach out and tug at the crisp fabric of his rolled up shirt sleeves. My hand slips and trails down the bare skin of his forearm. His skin is cool but soft. “Take a cupcake!”

I’m gifted with the tiniest smile when I shove off Ares and hand him two. “You’re a big guy with an appetite to match, I’m sure.”

At his blush, I grin back, surprised at myself. _Where did this easy flirtation come from?_ Forget it. I’m not asking questions...just gonna go with it.

Hades smile fades as he looks up, over my head. He sets the cupcakes back on the table. “Ms. Juno.”

“Mama H!” Ares turns and runs.

Spinning in surprise, I see Hera, the goddess of relationships, caught in Ares' loving choke hold. He looms behind her, chin digging into her perfectly straight hair. They’re as pretty as a picture, two golden gods who shine like the sun. She’s even more beautiful in person. While Ares is grinning, Hera’s face is blank, staring directly at Hades.

“Mr. Kronuson,” she says.

"Doctor!" I lift a finger, correcting her. PhDs don't come cheap.

When her gaze slides from Hades to me, it warms with a smile. “Niece! And where have you been hiding?”

“Wait. You all know each other?” I look between them, then it hits me. Everyone knows each other. Everyone except me. And for a moment, I feel small and confused. How could I ever expect to fit in with gods and goddesses who all grew up in the same world. I'm the goddess of one measly season.

“Oy! Asshole!” Ares yells, jostled off kilter by a guy from my English class who must have bumped into him. The creep was always dropping lewd Shakespeare quotes on girls like it was high art. He sneers and barks something back. Ares releases Hera and towers over the jerk, pointing in his face. “Watch where you’re walking. You could’ve hurt someone!”

“Well, that escalated quickly.” Hera sidesteps the shouting match. Walking to me, she pats my arm and kisses my cheek. A warm citrus and vanilla scent washes over me. “Hold on, honey. I’ve gotta say hello to a friend. Don’t move.”

Hades steps halfway between me and the argument like a human shield. His leg grazes my knee, and I take the rare opportunity to let my eyes trail over his broad shoulders. Even the gold buckle at the back of his vest is beautiful.

“Go on then! Coward!”

The creep, Bradley...no Brock, scurries away, and Ares walks back, plucking at the tablecloth of the _Water Pollution Kills_ table. The cyclops student manning the station sits, unmoving, with a panicked expression.

“What an asshole,” Ares growls and kicks at thin air. The huge, golden god has an instinct to protect that’s as clear as day when I think back to class yesterday. He helped me focus on something other than my unrequited crush. I watch him curse, jaw grinding together, and my face grows overly hot. My hair is down to my waist, messy and barely braided. I know the feeling by now. Arousal. And I think it’s for both of them.

 _Well...that’s disconcerting._ Can a being really have feelings for more than one person at the same time? The two gods are so different. How is that even possible?

I jump off the table and pad over to the science experiment next to Ares. Hades follows and crowds my right side. I’m the filling in a sexy man sandwich. No complaints, but it makes me nervous as heck.

“Looks really great!” With a smile for the student running the water pollution table, I try to put him at ease as I read over the poster and labels. His tremulous smile doesn’t reach his eyes, especially as his gaze darts over Ares and Hades. “Environmental protection is an important cause!”

Five cups lay in a line, showing how a single species of ivy grows in varied levels of polluted water. Each of the five rivers tested has five samples showing length of time the seeds had to grow, forming a giant square of little water cups. Various lengths of ivy grow out of each sample.

One line of seeds sits, cracked and grey, in the samples for the river Styx. No growth.

Idly, my fingers dance over the cup closest to me. Just like at home, I coax the seed with a quiet song, sending healing energy to the water. _Grow, grow, grow, little one. Find the warmth. Find the light._

A bright green seedling sprouts and curls out of the dark water toward my hand. When it wraps itself around my index finger like a tiny snake, I can’t help but laugh. 

Everyone else is dead quiet.

Looking up, I see Hades and Ares staring at me in slack jawed wonder. Hera is back too, blinking in surprise.

“Nice job, P!” Ares shakes both fists in the air like I scored a goal.

“That’s so...interesting.” Hera lifts a delicate finger to tap at her lips with a thoughtful gaze. 

I shrug, making my voice chipper. “It’s a plant. It’s what I do. Goddess of spring, remember?”

“Goddess. Spring.” Hades blinks slowly, breaths heavy and slow. He shakes his head and readjusts his glasses. His hand reaches out to pet the tiny seedling, and the pads of our fingers touch. Our eyes meet. It’s magic every time. “You’re incredible. I’d love to run experiments on yo-.”

“Experiment on her? Yeah. Not gonna happen, cuz.” Ares grabs my shoulder and pulls me closer to him. He eyes the water samples with a curled lip. “Besides, the water’s not even that bad. Just a little muddy.”

“Are you daft? The river Styx is toxic.” Hades glances at Hera. “Our captains of industry don’t seem to care about polluting waterways that only flow to the Underworld.”

“Pfft. Toxic Schmoxix.” Ares releases me and grabs the tiny cup from my hand. I pluck the baby plant out and drop it in one of the cleaner water samples. The congealed grey water in Ares’ hand wiggles as he leans over to glare at Hades. “I’d drink it. If you can’t handle it with your delicate constitution, I understand.”

“I’m a king, war boy.” Hades eyes blaze red, teeth sharpening. He picks up one of the other samples of Styx. The lifeless, grey seed sloshes at the bottom. “I can handle anything.”

Hera sighs and interlaces our fingers, pulling me away. “Drinking polluted water to impress a girl. Now, that’s new.”

“They’re not...Ares argues with everyone.” I can't take my eyes of the two giant men leaning toward each other. “It’s not like that.” 

Staring at each other, the two cups slowly inch their way toward their mouths. I’m too shocked to say anything. They could...they could die. Then again, they’re immortal. I’m horribly fascinated. The student manning the station catches it all on video, mouth open in shock. 

Just as Ares moves to tump the goopy water in his mouth, Hades gulps his down. They swallow and stare at each other, nostrils flaring.

Then comes the coughing. They double over at the same time, hands at their throats, their stomach. Spittle drools out of their mouths as they heave for air. 

Hera chuckles, shaking her head. “Men never cease to surprise me with their stupidity.”

Ares locks eyes with me and falls to the floor, one trembling arm reaching out. “H-help me.”

I rush to him, my hands traveling over his lips, throat, and chest. Could I heal him like I heal plants? Lifting his shirt, I remember there’s no wound, but perhaps I could do something. I place my hands on his broad chest, over his lungs.

“Oooooh it stings. You’re doin’ just fine.” He stares behind me with a smirk. Just as my power begins to sparkle to life, I catch him winking. 

Turning around, I see he’s more concerned with Hades than his own pain.

“You tricked me!” I smack his chest. Rock solid bastard.

“Ouch. That kinda hurt.” His puppy dog eyes don’t fool me this time. I stand, indignant and stare at both of them. “Are you dummies alright?”

Hades shrugs. His lips pinch to the side in an embarrassed expression. Even his normally suave hair is mussed and fluffy.

“Your worry touches my heart, Angel.” Ares jumps to his feet, pulls up his shirt, and slaps his 8-pack. Nothing jiggles. “But this iron gut has handled far worse.”

“Idiots! The lot of them.” Hera drags me away from the two most gorgeous and infuriating men I’ve ever met. “Now, let’s talk about these powers of yours.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The image above is by the amazing artist, Josybro. They were inspired by the scene in this chapter where Ares carries Persephone to do a Draw-this-in-your-style challenge on Instagram. Check out the [original post here](https://www.instagram.com/p/CHQfvTmA0V9/) and follow the hashtag [#jobro3k](https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/jobro3k/) to see other artists' take. It truly is such an HONOR! I'm still smiling.
> 
> Special thanks to [pinkdripp](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkdripp/pseuds/pinkdripp) for brainstorming the science fair and water quality part with me. You were a huge help!


	5. The Battle But Not The War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Content Note: Contains a sexually explicit scene (+enthusiastic consent)  
> Songs on Repeat:  
> ["Diamond"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Md7N5UP2NCg) by Izzy Bizu  
> ["After Dark"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waAlgFq9Xq8) by Mr. Kitty  
> ["Young God"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUhJRQSs6UQ) by Halsey
> 
> Thanks to Sophie and VesperNights for beta reading once again!

_Coach is running late._ I glance up at the oversized clock on the other side of the huge pool. The smell of chlorine is so strong, it seeps into my bones. _Weird! The whole team must be running late._

Pain splits across my cheek. A tiny, pink fist barely misses my nose.

“Oh Fates, Ares!” Persephone yelps. “I really didn’t think I’d land that one.”

I lick a hint of blood off my teeth and smile. “Good one! I’m proud of you.”

“Blood!” Her hands shake and flutter near my face but don’t touch.

I grab her wrists and kiss her knuckles. “It’s nothing. I promise.”

“Gods, I can’t believe I just did that.” She’s blushing like crazy, and it just makes me smile more despite the pain in my partly split lip.

She came early to swim practice, and we goofed around, spending the last 30 minutes on self defense fighting tactics. 

_S-I-N-G_. Elbow to the _solar plexus_. Heel on the _instep_. Fist to the _nose_. Knee to the _groin_. It was an easy roleplay, and I’d deflected them all. Until I got lazy.

“You oughta learn to protect yourself, considering your family’s line of work,” I say. That was the real reason I wanted to teach her today. Knowing Persephone was related to the mob boss Metis and her daughters was a surprise. The family is bad news, but Persephone is a living teddy bear. I can’t imagine her in on their schemes.

“Hera wants me to work with her! She says my powers could really help people.” Persephone’s soft thumb rubs over my lip. When I play at biting it, she just smiles and slaps my cheek lightly. I love having her so close. “But Mama doesn’t want me involved in the family business. I can’t help but want to trust Hera.”

“Your aunt is nice and all, but ultimately, she's an unrepentant capitalist.” I wasn’t explaining it right judging by her furrowed brow. “I don’t wanna say don’t trust her, but whatever this project is, just get a few opinions before you jump in. Make sure your values align.”

“Values align?” A slow smile creeps across her cute face. “That’s very emotionally aware of you.”

“Eh. Just something my ex used to say.” I shrug and pull at one of her ringlets, still holding her hand. Everything about her is soft and bright. “But aside from trust and emotions and _blerrrghhhh_...” I make a farting noise with my tongue. “You learned some good moves from your brat daddy today?”

She smiles and nods.

“Remember, being small just means you’re closer to the ground. A different center of gravity can really throw off an unprepared opponent. You’d pack a mean elbow to the gut.” I glance at the crotch of my tight swim trunks and cover my hands over the bulge with mock fear. “Or worse.”

“You’re terrible!” Her tinkling laugh echoes across the vast tiled room as she swats my arm.

“And you love it.” I lean closer just to see her blush deepen. “Don’t lie.”

“I never lie.” Her whispered words encourage me more than I have a right to.

For some reason, mostly because I’m a jackass who wants to hold her, I twist her around, bending her arm behind her back. My other hand grips her throat.

“Gotcha.”

On a sharp inhale, she looks back at me over her shoulder. There’s no fear, not even a little. She’s closer now, completely at my mercy.

“What in Tartarus is going on here?” A familiar, booming voice interrupts my nice moment with a nice girl whose nice, round ass digs into my crotch.

Hades walks in wearing swim trunks.

I sigh and let her go.

“Why are you here?” I don’t bother answering his dumb question, though I feel a little bad at how flustered it made Persephone. She tugs at her skirt, eyes on the ground as she walks to sit at a small table nearby. I throw my arms out to my side. “Where the fuck is the team...the coach?”

Hades prowls down the length of the pool, slow and stalking like a wolf. “Oh! You didn’t get the message? Coach was busy. As his backup, I decided to give the team the day off.”

I walk to my phone at the table and don’t see the message. He purposefully excluded me, arranging this whole awkward situation. Asshole.

“If we don’t have practice, I ask again...” My chest heats with irritation. “Why the fuck are you here?”

His gaze slides to Persephone and the tightness melts away. He seems almost worried. With sad puppy dog eyes watching her, he answers me. “Just checking to make sure everyone got the message.”

“In your swimsuit?” I ask.

The way Persephone’s gaze slides up, her fingers twisting together on the tabletop, like she can’t help but look at him makes my jaw clench. I’m not afraid to admit my cousin looks cut as hell. I’ve got him on bulk and overall sex appeal, but he’s a smidgen taller. There’s a certain visual appeal to his myriad criss-crossing scars. Apples to apples.

“Figured I’d get a workout in before dinner.” Hades rolls his jaw and looks over, tense but determined. “This pool is bigger than the one at our complex.”

Persephone turns to me for a reaction. I know she doesn’t mean it, but the way she looks me up and down, my dick wakes up. I can’t help but feel she’s sizing us up. _Down boy!_

I could drive her home right now and play it safe, but that’s never been my style. The challenge implicit in the girl I like watching me and my barely clothed cousin is too strong. 

Competition is in my blood, whether it’s fighting, athletics, or wooing women.

“Perfect.” I clap my hands together and walk to the lane directly in front of Persephone, turning so she can get a good look at my ass. I wink at Hades. “I could use the exercise!”

He smirks at me, dark eyebrows in a devilish slash. “Great.”

“Wonderful.” I need to throw off his confidence. “Wouldn’t want you to be late for dinner with your girlfriend.”

“I don’t have a girlfriend anymore.” Gaze tinged red, he rubs his hands together and crosses behind me. “We broke up yesterday.”

_Fuck!_

I say nothing, but my annoyance morphs into irrational rage in a second. Hot power washes over me. A fiery red haze tinges my vision, and my teeth sharpen enough it nicks my tongue. But the metallic tang of blood has never scared me. It sharpens my mind. 

This is my strength, and no measly god of the dead would best me. 

We glance at each other as we get into our diving stance. Like two boys on the playground, nothing needs to be said.

This is a race.

I watch for any clue or twitch to see if he’ll dive first. 

Some reasonable whisper in the back of my mind tells me this is what I wanted - Get Hades to break up with his asshole girlfriend, and make Persephone happy with the guy she really likes. 

But I’ve got this crazy idea that guy could be me now. The shortstack goddess sees beyond my teasing. There’s something there. If only I had more time.

 _Screw it!_ All I have is brute force and an animal desire to best my opponent. I can’t sink my teeth into his neck and demand submission, but I can swim faster than the big blue bastard.

His eyes search me. For a moment, I worry he can read my fucking mind with the way his face falls, so earnest and curious about my motives. I don’t give him the chance. His hesitation is my opportunity.

My body jumps into motion, shooting forward in a long arc. I slice into the water. 

Freestyle is the fastest stroke. His splash resonates behind me, but I have a pace to settle into. Arm over arm, the tilt of my body is mechanical after so much practice. I need just enough air to breath and keep kicking. The water is not a peaceful thing but sludge I fight against to move faster. The wall is coming. 

Spin down. Turn. Rocketing off, my feet scrape over the cement side. 

On my breaths, I glance over. He’s close, but I’m doing okay. Surely he doesn’t practice daily like I do. I beat the fucking Norse at the Inter-pantheon semi-finals.

Hades is fast though. Over the space of three more inhales, I catch glimpses of pink. Persephone stands close to the pool edge, chewing on her fingernails. As I somersault and twist to push off again, his foot slips over my leg.

 _Son of a b----!_ Was he trying to throw me off? No time to get lost in anger. _Hone it, dumb ass._

I push harder. He’s parallel with me now. His pace is a little longer which means I need to speed up to gain ground. It’s then I remember he was raised with the Norse. He’s in our apartment pool constantly. _Sweet Gaia, I might be fucked._

 _Do or die, war boy!_ I pay no attention to the fire in my muscles or the uncontrolled beat of my heart. There is only the need to win. Defeat the enemy. Dominate.

His foot pushes against my leg again. There’s no excuse for such poor form. He’s either losing control or trying to cheat me, just like his shit stain brother, Zeus. 

_Fuck him up!_ The daemon on my shoulder is louder _._ Red hot fury and instinct kick in. 

I lunge to his lane and grab his side, twisting him under me. I use his surprise to grab hold of his throat. If he thinks he can play dirty and win, I’ll show the slippery fucker who can fight dirty. My feet kick up, trying to keep us underwater. 

He almost knees me in the groin, but it hits my gut instead. A flash of white pain bursts behind my eyelids.

We both bob above water and suck in air while grasping at each other. Punches don’t land, they’re just sliding slaps. 

White, frothy water everywhere. Splashes and growls. All I can focus on is his starry, midnight skin and those gleaming, red eyes. _Bastard son of Kro-_

“STOP IT!”

Persephone’s shout, so loud and echoing, stops my heart. We both let go and push away from each other. Hades flickers back to the brighter shade of blue he normally keeps. But it’s Persephone that I’m worried about. 

She shakes, hands fisted at her sides. Red eyes pinch with fury. Red vines creep into the water toward us.

“I am not a bone to be fought over!” 

Her hair whips out, snaking in the air with wind that isn’t there. Black water lilies sprout along the thorny vines that swim like snakes across the water. I’m in awe of her terrible beauty.

“Slavering dogs, is that all you are?!”

I freeze, chest deep in the pool. Steam rolls off me in self disgust. 

“Of course not! I’m sorry. I never want you to feel that way.” Hades rushes out of the pool and gets to her first, kneeling so they’re eye level. He’s never had a problem humbling himself. It’s one of the things I admire about him. That softness will be the nail in the coffin for any chance I had with her. I don’t do soft. I joke, I’m mean, or I get mad. “My cousin just knows how to push my buttons.”

 _There it is._ The blame game. 

Persephone watches him, guarded, but seems to soften the longer they speak.

 _Fuck this shit!_ I can’t hear anything as static roars in my mind. _My fault. It’s always my fucking fault when others lash out._

I slap my face and tug at my hair to shake the self-hate loose. Why can’t people learn to take responsibility for their own actions instead of always blaming me?

 _Rich. Real rich coming from you._ My inner voice mocks me. _What are Persephone’s nicknames for you?_

Brat. Oaf. Weirdo. Boar.

I growl and splash the water, climb out the side, and stalk past them toward the locker room.

“I’ll be out in a minute to take you to Eros.” I don’t apologize for the fist fight, because I’m not sorry. I’d fight the bastard again if I could. What’s wrong with working out your feelings in a physical way? 

The locker door slams against the wall as I enter the large, dark space. 

How did I get here with my heart twisted around a freshman no one’s ever heard of? Even thinking about her like that ramps up my self loathing. She’s so much more than that. I’m selfishly glad that, besides Hades, no one else seemed to look twice at her. She’s so honest, cute as hell, and clever. She stands her ground at every turn and that power move with the vines? Holy Gaia.

My tall, brilliant, soon-to-be-king cousin is on his knees in front of her, probably begging for forgiveness. 

I need to admit she’s out of my league. Give up already on this silly crush.

_“Slavering dogs, is that all you are?!”_

The tussle with Hades didn’t hurt as much as hearing her shout those words with such disgust. 

Turning on the loud shower, I tear my wet briefs off and put my face straight in the steaming rush of water. If only it could drown out her words. They tumble through my mind on repeat.

_“Slavering dogs, is that all you are?!”_

We're dogs who treat her like a bone to be fought over. An object. The words cut deeper than any fist fight could. 

They hurt, because they’re true. 

I kick the handicap shower bench in frustration. It clangs and falls back into position. My fury is futile, like always. I shout obscenities at myself and punch the tile wall. My pulse beating at my bloody knuckles oddly calms me and brings me back into my body. Out of my head.

“I am a beast,” I whisper, laying my palm flat on the wet tile and staring at the damaged knuckles. My forehead thuds against the wall as the hot water rains down my back. I have so little control over my dark side, it scares me sometimes.

“Ares, are you okay?”

Her sweet voice reminds me of a maiden in a fairy tale, the kind who can waltz into a forest of dangerous creatures and change the world with the force of her love. Hebe loves those stories, even if Athena always followed them with long discussions on the subject of women’s empowerment.

Persephone is a princess. I’d held out hope she’d give me a sliver of her earnest attention. Friends or more, it barely mattered if she cared about me. But I am what I am. If she entertains fantasies of white knights, she’ll run fast when she sees the real me.

"Open the door. Please, Ares."

I don’t bother with a towel or clothes as I walk over to pull open the door. My jaw ticks in irritation, and I say nothing.

She’s as pretty as a picture, even when her mouth drops open in surprise. Blinking, her eyes go round as she looks me up and down slowly, then again as if to see if I’m real. _Fuck_. I go half hard at her perusal, but thankfully she’s looking at my face now. 

Her anger surprises me. It’s a beautiful sight. I’d take passion over shyness any day of the week.

“Is this supposed to shock me?” She pushes the locker door further open and stomps in. As it swings shut, she braces her fists at her hips. Her anger cools in an instant, mouth turning down with worry. “You’re crying.”

I lift a hand to my cheek in disbelief. It was just shower water, surely. But no, she’s right. A warm trickle of tears is just flowing down my fucking face. _Gods above!_ I rush forward and press my hands gently over her eyes.

“Don’t look at me,” my voice wavers.

I can feel the smile lines crinkle at the corner of her eyes as she laughs. “Says the man buck naked. You’re trying to scare me away, aren’t you?”

The words don’t seem right. I’d never really want to scare her. Confusion clogs my throat. There’s no way I could explain myself.

She pulls my hands away, my wrists caught in her fierce grip. “Hades coddles me. You try to shock me. I’m just a fragile innocent, hmm. Even to you?”

I catch the unsaid thing right away. _Even to you_ , means she thought I was different.

“Maybe you are,” I growl and lean down so we’re eye level. My nose boops against hers and I can smell that earthy flowery scent. Her red rimmed rage makes my chest heave with excitement. “Fragile as a hurricane. You’re special. Powerful. I can’t stop thinking about you.”

“Ares,” she says on an exhale and jumps on me. _Well fuck me sideways!_ She repeats my name, over and over, as she kisses my neck and pulls at my hair.

“You’re not fragile, huh?” I walk over to the shower stall I was just in and press her back hard against the tile wall, closing the curtain with a rough tug. Her cute little outfit is getting soaked but she doesn’t seem to care.

“Ares,” she whispers my name, not his. We haven’t even kissed for real yet, but already her pupils are blown, lips wet and inviting. “You showed me how to stand up for myself...called me a genius. No one's ever treated me like that.”

“Then the whole world is full of total morons. Lucky for you, I already knew that.” I smirk at her. The water isn’t hitting her straight on, but droplets slide down her long pink hair and settle on her eyelashes. She’s like a flower full of dew in the morning.

She leans forward, and her lips press against mine, soft and questing. The faint taste of honey and her warm breath on an exhale ramps up my desire. I grasp under her ass with one arm and sink my fingers into her hair.

“I don’t know what this is!” She breaks away from the kiss, and I can see the start of panic in her eyes.

“Do we need to know? I like you here...” I place my palm over her heart, then move to rub my thumb at her temple. “...and here, but your juicy little body doesn’t hurt.”

“My feelings are all a jumble.” She says the words while kissing at my face and rubbing her cloth-covered breasts against my bare chest.

“We can stop.”

“No!” She pulls back again, startled that I would say such a thing. The insistence makes me smile. “I want to...at least to explore whatever this is.”

“You wanna make out?” It’s something I did plenty of in high school. With her, even just that would be amazing.

“Maybe a little more?” Her sneaky smile betrays the innocence of those wide upturned eyes. If she wants more, I’m not the man to turn that down.

“Tell me if you wanna slow down, alright?”

She nods and leans forward, biting my bottom lip. _Little temptress._

I spin around and sit on the fold-down bench in the stall. “Stand up on my legs.”

Shakily, she makes her way.

First, I pull down her panties, watching her for a reaction. The only one I get is rapid breaths and flushed cheeks. I tug her flats, socks, and skirt off next while she takes off her shirt and bra. Everything gets thrown through the gap in the curtain, and there she is.

“Perfect,” I say and gaze up at the feast of pretty curves and soft, pink skin. I gently kiss the inside of her knee, then up her thigh, mirroring the motion on the other leg with my hand. Her tender center I can already smell. My breath ghosts over her there, fingers parting her coarse hair. “Now put one knee up on my shoulder and hold onto that bar for support. I want a taste.”

“This is obscene.” She looks positively scandalized, but complies with obvious eagerness.

“Isn’t it, though? Grab me if you need. I like a little hair pulling. You’ll be fine, though. I’ve got you.” Glancing up with a smile, my nose sweeps back and forth at her apex, barely touching. “You ready?”

She nods, breath hitching. The woman doesn’t have a lot of experience, but I see the wonder in her eyes. My chest grows tight with emotion knowing I put it there. 

Gazing up at her, my tongue licks out. When I make contact with her slippery flesh, I grumble in satisfaction. She’s already so aroused and open to me.

Her hips flex forward, eager, and I chuckle. Not to let my hands go unused, one comes up to help spread her lips open and circle her clit. I cock my head and slip my tongue just inside her entrance. 

“Oh dear.” A full body shudder runs through her, and I reach up with my free hand to grope and pinch at her beautiful, heavy tits. Her warmth envelops me. In and out, I taste and pluck at her nub until she’s shaking. 

“You want my fingers now?” I pull away.

“Yes,” she pants. “Gods. Please.”

“At your service,” I grumble and go back to town, licking up and around her folds before the stiff tip of my tongue finds and flicks her clit, back and forth. My middle finger circles and prods her entrance, and I watch her face. Her hips shift, twitching and tense for a moment, before she settles into the feeling.

When she blinks and stares down, I push inside. Just one finger, but for her it’s a revelation. A new experience this guileless soul chose to share with me. In that moment, it becomes more than sex, something sacred, and I’ll be damned if it’ll be anything less than amazing.

“Beautiful. You’re so beautiful.” I lean back to whisper as my middle finger sinks deeper into her. With a slow in and out, we feel our way into each other from that one point on her body. 

Her hips roll against me, fingers curling into my hair. My scalp prickles. I nudge my ring finger inside slowly and deepen the pressure and pace of my tongue at her clit.

“I feel...strange.” She bites her lip, looking down at me. “Cold but electric.”

“You're close, Angel. Let go. Be free with me.” I’m surprised and oddly proud of my coaxing words. The tenderness is super hot. My fingers shuttle in and out, carefully arching to rub at the space most women love. 

“Aaaghh!” She cries out, and her body convulses. Tremors clutched at my fingers. I steady her with my other arm up around her back, hand resting between her shoulder blades.

Her knees wobble, so I slip out and guide her down to straddle my lap.

Worried she’ll be freaked out about kissing after being down there, I just smile and trace a line with the tip of my nose up her shoulder blade. Her grip in my hair tightens, and she demands I meet her mouth. This girl is always surprising me, but the silky slide of her mouth over mine leaves me know room to think. She's hungry and untrained, but there's nothing sweeter.

“Not bad, then?” I ask.

“Good, Ares. So, so, soooo good.” Her round, open eyes could be the death of me, and I’d thank her. She’s so sweet, I know my heart is in terrible danger. 

“You know the day you first brought cookies to class?” I slide my hands up and down her body just for the pleasure of feeling every part of her.

“I know, I know.” On a long exhale, she leans her head on my shoulder. “Your rugby stick looked like a penis. I won’t make the same mistake again.”

“It was no mistake.” I cup her jaw and pull so her beautiful eyes are looking at me again. “It meant a lot to me. I didn’t eat it for three days. It sat on my night stand like a treasure, at least, until the ants came.”

She laughs for a moment, before her gaze grows serious. “You’re a good guy.”

“People treat me like an ass, so I act like one. Few ever see beyond the jokes or the tough guy act.”

“I do.” 

Persephone is an open, aching heart. Every emotion is in plain view, from her easy blush to that quick temper. She doesn’t even bother to hide what wounds her. A welcome fucking change of pace. I’ve started to believe that maybe her tenderness could draw out my own.

Her soft tongue licks at my pulse point before she bites my ear, then kisses it all away. She’s a symphony of gentle, unpracticed intimacy.

I slip a hand between us, pleased at how wet she is.

Her dark blush colors not just her cheeks, but the freckled skin of her chest. A glorious sight. She writhes on me, primed and ready for more. Women are so damn amazing with orgasms. They can go and go and go. It just isn’t fair.

“You want to come again for me?” I ask.

“I can?” She rears back with an adorable double chin and startled expression. “I thought I’d just help you out.”

“Fuck yeah, you can come again. I’ll make sure of it.” Gently, I grasp her slippery clit between two fingers.

“Oh.” Her eyes widen further, mirrored by my smile. “C-can I feel you?”

I groan and nod my head, overwhelmed at the thought.

Her featherlight fingers grip my cock where it stands, hard and wedged between them.

“It’s so hard, b-but the skin is…” She tips her head down to inspect it. “Delicate.”

“Not too delicate, Angel.” The shower mist helps with lubrication, but I have a better idea. Sliding my hand to her tailbone, I scoot her closer and kiss her nose. “Why don’t you rub against me with that sweet pussy. I think it’ll feel good for you too.”

“I can do that?” She stares back at me with a slow smile, wiggling closer. Her legs widen further, knees squeaking on the little bench. 

“You can do anything.” After the words come out, they take on another meaning. I swallow. “You’re safe to do whatever you want with me. No pressure. Just fun.”

It was a little more than fun for me, but with how miserably I’d started the whole thing in a rage and fist fight, I need to know she’s comfortable.

“You’re a lot more fun than I gave you credit for, brat daddy.”

 _Oh, that’s how she’s gonna play it._ I groan and pull her tighter, lifting her ass slightly with one hand to demonstrate the kind of slick friction that could please us both. “And you’re a lot more trouble than I would’ve guessed, young lady.”

She smirks and lifts higher on her knees to rub against me to her own rhythm. I try to let her have her way but can’t control the need to rut against her a little. Her body hugs me perfectly. She’s all bountiful, bouncing flesh and cooing, surprised noises. There’s nothing better than a woman riding me, using my body to get herself off.

My fingers dig into her ass and pull her closer against my own thrusts. Her wet folds cover me. With a sinful smile, she lifts a breast up to my mouth. Hot damn. I’m never one to turn that down. I suck her nipple hard and lightly nip at it. Everything is drenched in either the steam, the shower spray, or our combined arousal. 

I’m close in no time at all, grasping and whispering encouragement to her.

“There.”

“Here?”

“Gods, yes.”

Her eyes glow brighter.

“It does feel good,” she says.

Our frantic movement increases. Higher.

She slides over me, so warm and wet. A primordial dream.

“Ares,” she cries. Our red eyes shine together, refracting to a warm glow in the mist. It’s a connection that’s almost alive.

“Persephone.” I grunt, shuttling her faster, hoping she’s close too.

Her legs clench at my sides and arms tighten on me.

Still, she moves. I pull and push.

“Fuck!” The familiar tension rises.

“You’re coming?”

“Yes!”

_Boom._

Like a crack of lightning, I come on a formless shout. She leans back, smiling as she watches me shake and crumple forward.

“Amazing!”

“A fuckin’ mess is more like it.” I chuckle.

“We’re in the shower, dummy. You’re fine. And I think it’s…” She holds my face in both of her hands. “I think you’re perfect. That was awesome.”

 _Awesome. Amazing._ A big, freckled smile and genuine joy shines in her eyes. That’s the kind of reception a man could get hooked on after a sexual performance. When I asked her to trust me, to be free, she did. No self-doubt or insecurity. She’s special because she’s so real. 

“What does this mean?” she asks. “To you?”

“This means...something I can’t quite put to words, but it doesn’t mean I own you. I heard what you said, that we acted like dogs. It slayed me. You don’t deserve to feel like an object. You’re really special to me.” I sigh and lean back, looping a long strand of her hair in my finger and take a moment to peruse her beautiful little body. “I know you have feelings for Hades. Even with the stupid thing in the pool, I get that. You know what my ex always used to say? _Jealousy is rooted in ownership_. Stupid huh?”

“That's not stupid!” Persephone’s brows draw together. “It kind of makes sense.”

“I meant jealousy is stupid, silly.” I laugh and tickle her side.

She closes her eyes and shakes her head. “It’s all so confusing. He broke up with Minthe, but he’s still my teacher and...” She opens her eyes again and looks between our two naked bodies. “I can’t help feeling like I’m this silly virgin in over her head...with both of you.”

“You’re safe with me. We’re good.” I put on my best stern dad face and point at her. “And listen missy, virginity is a social construct. The whole concept defines you through a round peg in a round hole scenario. My tongue and fingers were just inside you. What about when you touch yourself or you’re with a woman? If your hymen breaks horseback riding, is that it?”

There’s a smile pinched to one side of her face.

“We have a thousand firsts in life. What’s so important about the first p-in-v penetration? What if you fell on an eggplant or someone stuck a knob of ginger in your ass?”

She laughs and punches my chest playfully. “You’re so different than I ever would have expected.”

“Am I?”

“You used to tease me all the time.”

“And now I tease you in a different way.” My fingertips trace over her collarbone. “I don’t know why I do the things I do half the time. I barely know who I am. We're still young and figuring all this shit out.”

She strokes my hair in a casual way “It’s all so confusing. These feelings you and I have for each other aren’t untrue, just because I…”

“Feel them for someone else too?” I grab her hands and kiss her fingertips. “We’re friends first, remember? Do you believe that?”

“I believe you.” Gods, it’s a heady power to hold someone so loose but so close. 

“Listen, I'm all about the underdog. That's probably why I respect Hades so much.”

“How is he an underdog? He's a king. He has a PhD. Money. A big family.”

“You really don't know anything about his childhood, huh?” I sometimes forget she lived like a farmer her whole life, probably with little in the way of technology. “His father was a nightmare. His brother, Zeus, made sure he drew the short straw in picking their realms. Hades didn't seem to care. I never quite figured out if it's because he likes staying out of the spotlight or he has a low sense of self worth.”

“When did you become so insightful?” She smiles at me. “Ever think to turn some of that on yourself?”

“There’s this thing my-”

“Let me guess. Something your ex used to say?” She arches an eyebrow at me. “Sounds like you miss her?”

“Fuck yeah, I do.” I crack my neck, realizing how often I must talk about her. “She’s taking the semester off to explore non-traditional employment. We fight like crazy, but...she just gets me.”

Persephone lays a palm over my heart. We’re still naked, but the intimacy feels comfortable. I push my luck and trace my nose down her neck until she shivers and hugs me close. 

“You make me strong,” she whispers against my neck. “But Hades makes me weak.”

I feel a hundred feet tall and totally irrelevant at the same time. Trouble is, I know what she means. Weak in the knees. A spark of recognition that can’t be explained, something beyond base attraction or baggage meeting baggage. They share a like to like. I felt that magic once and can’t begrudge her the same.

“This started out as me proving I could be your friend, Angel. Nothing’s changed.”

She exhales, like every worry in the world is tucked inside her lungs. 

I won the battle but not the war, and that stings a little. My arms enfold her, hugging tight, and her tension eases. For a brief moment, I’m a part of her, and I know for certain I made a difference in this sweet person’s life.

Not bad for a war god.


	6. What Blooms in the Underworld

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thanks to Sophie for reading this over and April for her comedic genius re: the three kings. The chapter title is a self indulgent nod to my very short piece "What Blooms in the Underworld?" which you can find in my list of works. 
> 
> Songs on Repeat: ["Apparition"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MF3Av_7QWvg) by Blue Americans and ["Sheep in Wolves Clothes"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RN1qMdcgV8) by Little Hurricane

I nearly trip as I struggle back into my track pants, trying to hide my big, blue body in the shadow of the wall. My gym bag sat outside the entrance to the indoor pool area, so I could make a grand entrance in my swimsuit. Pompous _sonofabitch_ that I am. Persephone’s gaze trailed over me in appreciation. I didn’t dream that or the sight of her powerful transformation. She has a surprising dark side full of razor sharp vines and black blooms. But her words cut the fog of awe.

_I’m not a bone to be fought over._

All the posturing and jealousy had led to a bad end. I should have known. So focused on Ares, I’d made her feel like a possession to be consumed. Wrong. Nothing was farther from the truth. So, I’d buttoned up my anger at Ares, tamped down my desire to apologize, and walked away. She didn’t want me to drive her home. If I was a dog, I’d left with my tail between my legs. 

Looking like a fool, I hop on one leg in broad daylight, tugging my clothes back on. Dressed again, I jog back to my office and grab the pop quizzes I forgot to grade the day before. 

A familiar stocky centaur nearly bumps into me, grumbling.

“Is anything the matter, old friend?” I ask Chiron, my fellow Molecular Biology lab assistant.

“This isn’t working for me.” His shaggy black hair doesn’t hide the bags under his eyes. “I...I think I may have to drop out of being a teaching assistant. Khari’s shifts changed at the weavers guild, and the kids are home alone. They’re always in trouble. I just got a text the house is on fire. Literally.” 

The weariness of a father isn’t something I should be envious of, but I am. He has a wife, children of his own, and foster kids to boot, a full life, even with his pursuit of his third doctorate.

Chiron shakes his head. “I just don’t know how we’ll make ends meet without this job.”

My instinct is to offer to pay him, but I’ve had too many experiences of my gift giving being misconstrued, so I restrain myself. Laying a hand on his shoulder, I squeeze. “Let’s chat with the department head tomorrow. Surely something can be done.”

His eerie silver eyes search me, hooves clopping on the tile floor. “You’re a good man, Hades. One day, you’ll make a great king.”

I gulp, a shiver shaking through me. The pressure to be a king is ever present. I know no one besides my brothers understand my reluctance.

“Thanks, Chiron. Try not to worry about it tonight. We’ll talk tomorrow.” _Push off the worry_ has always been my motto, but I wonder now if that’s even good advice. Look where it got me. A false start. Failure to launch.

I head back to my car and resolve to visit my brothers. Thursdays are poker night at the family’s mountain cabin, so I know where they’re at. I’ll bring a bottle of scotch, and we can talk about our futures like real adults.

Unlocking my door, I catch sight of movement across the parking lot. My face grows hot, and I rush into the driver’s seat, leaning over the steering wheel, attention rapt on the sight before me.

Pink and gold. 

Persephone and Ares leave the swimming area. Their conversation is peppered with one belly laugh after another. They hold hands casually, but there’s something more. Her outfit is different. She changed clothes. A sick weight sinks in my stomach. Perhaps Ares won her heart after all. Who did I think I was strolling into school taking a god like him on for a woman’s affection? An idiot.

I can’t blame her, either. As annoying as Ares is, he’s only ever been kind to his girlfriends. It was probably stupid thinking someone as bright and charming as her would be interested in me anyway.

They zoom away. Her eyes are closed in laughter. Have I ever made anyone that happy? Certainly not my father, who chased my brothers and I to the ends of the ends of the mortal realm. Mother and I only found refuge with the Norse, in a pantheon he couldn’t reach.

I feel like my life has been one long stretch of loneliness, of fantasies not living up to the reality of social situations.

My phone chimes in my seat. Minthe models her new handbag on Nymphstagram. I must still have her on post notifications. She’s the red devil I know, someone who saw all my faults and was honest with me. My finger hovers over her picture, but I click unfollow and block. I see my faults well enough.

Even feeling like a total wreck, I’d rather be alone than with her. 

Well...not alone. 

I seek out my brothers. The family cabin and the lake behind it slide into focus. I make record time, not realizing how fast I'm driving up the meandering two-lane road. Lost in thought, the conversation with Persephone before the science fair keeps running through my head.

 _“Will you continue your work at the university or do field research?”_ she asked. I got my doctorate last year. Staying on as a lab assistant was not the smartest move. Research made more sense, and I was spinning my wheels. With the personal funds to take my dissertation findings into the field, all I lacked was the motivation.

“Brother!” Poseidon bounds out of the split log front door in dripping swim trunks. I can already imagine the mess he’s left in the house. “Finally. Took ya long enough. Poker’s no fun with two people.”

I lift a paper bag from the passenger seat and waggle it at him. “Everything is fun with scotch.”

“And that’s why you’re...” Poseidon looks behind him and turns back with a wink. “...my favorite brother.”

Zeus saunters out onto the deck in the most ridiculous satin three-piece suit. The cut and style is fine, but I can’t contain my chuckle. “Bright yellow. Really?”

“It compliments my skin tone.” He rears back, pulling at the lapels with one hand, the other crooked behind his back. “Anyway, I just got it from the designer and trying it on for fit. It’s for the party on Saturday.”

My face falls to a frown. The party. Ares’ party. At our complex, in our shared pool. Will Persephone be there? Almost certainly. Could I stay away? Unlikely.

“Hey grumpy dog, I need you to practice frowning more.” Poseidon throws his arm around my waist and side hugs me. “How are the nymphs going to notice me with all this raw enthusiasm?”

“Hera will be there.” Zeus stares at the lake with a wistful, innocent expression, belying his true nature. Horn dog.

“So that explains the suit,” I say. “A bit much don’t you think?”

“Not with my bros to back me up!” Zeus reveals what he'd been hiding - two more garish sunny suits. “I got matching ones for all of us!”

I groan internally, but manage a courtesy smile as they grin and high five each other, herding me into the cabin. He places the suits over the back of the couch and unbuttons his own jacket and vest. After I pick up the living room and start the dishwasher, we settle down at the kitchen table.

Although each of us is a king-to-be, I’ll never see us as anything other than three scared kids, brothers who met later in life always trying to make up for lost time. It’s there in the way we cling to these family moments yet barely understand each other. Sometimes it seems the only thing that bonds me to them is shared trauma, the shadow of our father’s pursuit and his powerful ichor running through our veins. 

“I wonder if I should take her name?” Zeus sighs as he shuffles the cards and flicks them towards us with deft movements.

I hadn’t been paying attention, but my youngest brother can only be talking about one person. Hera Juno. He’s obsessed. 

“Did you know she smells like sunshine?” His gaze is glassy and unfocused.

Poseidon rolls his eyes. I needle him, “I don’t know. To me she smells like dirty money.”

Zeus guffaws. “All those transactions are legal and binding. The government's fraud audit revealed no wrongdoing.”

“She’s a mob princess. You know this.” I lean forward. He can’t really be that blind, can he?

“They made their millions on Etsy and saavy financial investments.”

“Riiiight.” Poseidon and I share a glance. We’re always trying to talk him out of his pursuit of the young criminal heiress, not that he ever follows our advice.

“She barely tolerates you.” Poseidon says between gulps of his contraband ambrosia-laced Four Loko.

“She plays hard to get. I wouldn’t expect either of you to know the difference,” Zeus says. It shouldn’t sting, but it does. With our cards in hand, he lays the three community cards face up in the middle, and we place bets. “Anyway, what was up with you and Ares almost coming to blows on the patio the other night?” 

I don’t answer. He places the fourth card down, the turn, and lights a cigar. Smoke curls around his long, purple fingers. Zeus has a laser focus when he wants, the kind that chills me at times.

“It’s about a girl isn’t it?” His feline smile tells me turnabout is fair play. I got onto him about Hera, and now its payback. 

I don’t say a word, resist the urge to gulp, but I can feel my jaw click. Fucking tell. After our silent bets, he places the fifth community card down, the river.

“If you’re not prepared to win, be prepared to lose.” He goes all in and flicks the ash off his cigar. Taking a long draw, he studies me for cracks. I know the look.

“Worry about yourself. That’s enough to keep you busy.” It’s weak, but all I can think to say. Weak, like today in the pool, weak like when I creepily watched Persephone and Ares in the parking lot. Debilitating inadequacy morphs to anger in a flash. My fingers shift to a midnight hue as I push my obols to the middle. All in. Voice growing deeper, I find my spine. “You can’t stand in the shadow of the Olympus City Manager forever, little brother.” 

Zeus arches an eyebrow at me. The room crackles with static electricity as his long locks twist in the air. “Not gonna reprimand the party boy over here?”

Poseidon puts his cards down and hands up. Leaning back in his chair, his gaze darts between us as he pulls out his vape. “I fold. All yours.”

“If you’re not prepared to rule, be prepared to follow.” I sip my scotch and will my skin to return to the bright blue I prefer. My simple disguise.

Zeus flips his cards on the table and interlaces his fingers, elbows resting on the table. Two pair, but it’s the high cards that catch my eye. Queen of Hearts and Queen of Diamonds. Persephone and Hera flash in my mind. Mob princesses or...queens?

“I am prepared,” he says. “I plan to take my place as ruler in Olympus very soon.”

I gulp this time and look over at Poseidon. He shrugs. Typical.

“You’ve got your PhD, big brother.” The simpering smile on Zeus’ face pricks my irritation, but I also have a soft spot for him. It’s so hard to stay mad when there’s a vein of truth to his words. “What are you waiting on?”

“I’ll do my duty when the time comes. For now, I have classes to teach.”

He studies me for a long moment with minuscule movements of his eyes. How the youngest among us became the sneakiest at getting his way, I’ll never understand. Perhaps it was being raised with the Egyptians. Courtly intrigue there is do or die.

I place my cards on the table. Three of a kind. King high. If Zeus takes his throne, we all must. It’s the unspoken announcement. As usual, our baby brother somehow finds himself the real leader among us.

“And you?” Zeus’ gaze slides to Poseidon. Their middle brother loves to visit his realm, and by visit, I mean party. But the logistics of constructing a castle underwater had intimidated him for too long. It was a vacation spot. “Hades isn’t wrong. We need to be thinking about the future.”

“Funny you ask.” Poseidon pastes on a winning grin, his hand arching up to the ceiling. “Word in the deep sea is there’s this lost city. Figured I could renovate what’s already there and…”

Their voices drone on. While I should be helping him plan, all I could think about is what I’ve put off for too long - my future. The Underworld...unsettles me. Charon, Hecate, Thanatos, and the Furies keep the lights running, but it’s rustic. Empty and foreboding. Frankly, the wide open space of it all makes me feel small and incompetent.

Is my infatuation with the goddess of spring just another distraction? She glows so bright, almost the opposite of what I know my future holds. It seems selfish to even consider her there. She would wilt and fade, and I would hate myself for it. What blooms in the Underworld?

Three generous glasses of scotch later, my face is completely numb. An urgent desire to apologize to Persephone about the incident at the pool rouses within me. My phone wobbles in my hand, and I blink hard trying to remember the sequence to unlock it. Aha! Got it!

“Oh, she’s a cutie!”

“Shut it!” I snap over my shoulder at Poseidon who retreats back a step. Both my stupid, smiling brothers stand in the living room with their arms over each other’s shoulders, watching me.

I stand up, bracing my feet apart to stop the room spinning. Back to the task at hand, everything blurs in front of me except Persephone. Persephone with a cowboy hat. Persephone hugging her mom. Persephone with puppies.

“What a smile on our brother!” Zeus says as he circles me. I try to bat him away but almost lose my balance. “Haven’t seen one like that in…”

“Never.” Poseidon laughs.

“No, no, no.” Zeus whispers, right behind me now. He’s the devil on my shoulder. “Put the text over a sad picture of yourself so she knows you mean it. Go into selfie mode.”

Poseidon grimaces, shaking his head, silently mouthing. “Don’t do it.”

“Gotta to take a piss.” I stomp down the hallway and close the door. After collapsing on the toilet seat and shoveling some water down my gullet with my hands as a cup, I exhale heavily and compose a message. The words bleed together, and I repeat the whole thing out loud in a whisper to myself five times, correcting spelling and grammar issues each time. 

> _(Draft): A heartfelt apology for my behavior today. On reflection, I regret blaming my cousin for my actions. The stupidity was half mine, and I hope you can forgive me._

Finally satisfied, I hit send. I miss the button and send a cat detective emoji instead. 

As my finger slides around, it selects, deletes, and copies things in a jumble before I successfully hit send.

> _Hades: &*^ blaming my cousin for my actions. The stupidity was $$$$ A heartfelt apology for my behavior today. _I hope you can forgive me.__

Rather than burn the phone and swear off all social contact, I type another message, growling with irritation at myself.

> _Hades: srry,,,big dum fingers. I’m sorry i mint._

I send it and don’t remember a thing until waking up the next morning with my face sticking to the bathroom floor tile. _Disgusting._ I smell like chlorine and alcohol.

After a long, hot shower, I inhale half a loaf of bread, a strong coffee, and pack up the car.

The road away from the mountain cabin is beautiful and winding. Every new bend is a surprise, despite the fact I’ve driven this route a hundred times.

It’s spring, the pause of breath when the world is awash in color.

Every day is bittersweet, knowing here may be brighter while over there, faded away. Each moment feels precious but also wasted if one isn’t out of doors taking time to bask in it.

Persephone. 

Like the season she rules, she’s impossible to escape. She’s everywhere, all the time, in each flower I see. The heady attraction is nothing I can put a finger on. She’s shy, cavalier, determined, or, like yesterday, wondrous in a dark power I’d never have expected from her. As the vines crawled across the water to me, I wanted to let them wrap me up, have black blooms sprout in my hair, and let their inky leaves fall in my face. I wanted her to drag me in just to feel that intensity trained on me, even if it was in anger. I didn’t care.

Like a dream made flesh, she appears as a mirage on the horizon. 

Petals fall from her hands as she twists, dancing on the side of the road. At a gaze, a mere suggestion of her fingertips, color sprouts anew. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful and free.

I slow down on approach with the dawning realization that this is not a dream. She’s really walking alone on the side of the road, still at least a couple miles from the city. What on Gaia’s green earth? My tires crunch on the shoulder of the road, and I lean out the window.

“Persephone?” I call out. “Can I drive you somewhere?”

She hums and wiggles in an adorable serpentine motion, hands popping out as roses and weeds alike explode in the greenery surrounding her. Dropping to the ground, she coaxes a few large sunflowers up until they’re taller than her head. Craning her head up, she grabs the leaves and big circular bloom as if it were a dancing partner.

I get out of the car and crouch next to her kneeling form. Rather than touch and risk spooking her, I make my voice loud. “Persephone!”

She spins, looking at me over her shoulder with a dawning, luminous smile. For me? She’s smiling after that stupid debacle in the pool yesterday? I decide not to bring up my drunken messages. Maybe I’m lucky and her phone fell into a bog or she has minor amnesia and couldn’t recover her password. She never replied to the message, so there’s always hope.

“Hades...hey.” Her cheeks are flushed, eyes sparkling with joy as she plucks out her earbuds. Her warm palm falls on my forearm. I swear my body comes alive at the small touch, as if I were a seed she could grow. “Got your messages. Was it a...butt dial?”

“Something like that.” I grimace. “Why are you walking alone out here?”

“Oh! Well I can’t drive. I mean, I can drive...a tractor. It’s probably about the same, but it’s my day off and I didn’t want to bother anyone at the house. I was just gonna hang out in the library at school.” She peers at my car and bites her bottom lip. Her hand on my arm rubs absentmindedly. The woman has no personal space, and I adore it. “Are you okay?”

 _Oh gods, she’s looking at me again._ I cough and fall to my ass on the ground, sadly breaking our physical connection, but at least I can think straight. My legs cross in front of me, and I pick at the grass. “Rough night is all. Too much scotch.”

“Mama always said scotch is a man’s drink.” She chuckles and pulls her hair to one side, showing off the long column of her neck. “Funny now that I think of it, since it’s the only thing she drinks.”

“Your mom never told you about your family - I mean, your grandmother’s line of work, did she?” As the smile melts off her face, I kick myself. _Head first into the deep end,_ _dimwit_. Might as well have asked straight away, _How’s your mobster granny doing?_

“Yeah. I’m realizing she kept a lot hidden from me. I...I don’t know much about them, but I get a sense they’re not exactly above board about things?”

“Not exactly.” I try to temper myself. Illicit drugs, manufacturing, and contraband items traded to mortals. All our grandfather did was rail against Metis and her daughters. It only seemed natural to dislike the family, but now I wonder if that was the real story. “Their business skirts and subverts Ouranos’ laws. They’re a little chaotic.”

“Sounds like them...well, a little like me too. The chaotic part at least.”

I look at the flowers everywhere and remember the dangerous ones yesterday. The women of her family are incredibly powerful. I have to admit that, despite the fact I’ve only heard ill of them.

“Are we enemies?” she asks. Her lips purse, almost imperceptible, as she assesses me.

Shit, maybe we are, but I’m not about to let her believe it. “Opposites are not always enemies.”

The ocean and the moon spring to mind, the trees and the wind - forces that find balance. Spring and the dead. What on earth did we have to do with each other? Her powers would complement a rain or sun god better. Even the dynamic of Demeter’s power over the controlled harvest contrasts with the wild nature of spring. And what am I? King of the Underworld. Irrelevant.

“We could be friends,” I muster, as she worries her lip. _More than friends_ , the young, foolish part of my heart screams.

“I could always use more friends.” Her easy grin returns, open and so trusting. I don’t want to be the creep that’s only interested in her for her beauty or this chemical connection that draws us closer. I want to be her friend. That isn’t a lie.

My fingers reach out to pet along the rust colored seeds that ring the center of a tall, solid sunflower. “Your flowers bloom up to the sky like magic.”

“But it’s the ground that holds them.” Persephone turns to me and tucks her legs to the side. “The darkness under the earth is terribly important too.”

“Yeah?” I sound like a fool, dumbstruck by a pretty girl. Oh well, the truth is, I am.

Her face, round and sweet, peeks up at me. Freckles dot her nose. Was there ever a more perfect picture? Just the sight of her in her element, among the flowers, makes my chest ache with tenderness.

“As a kid..." She digs the fingers of one hand knuckle-deep in the red dirt. "I always saw life as springing up to the sun, like you said. Then one day, playing hide and seek with Mama, I snuck into the hollow of a tree. Quietly waiting to be found, I saw the strangest thing.”

She pulls something out of the ground, pale and wriggling.

“A worm?” My laugh comes out like a child’s giggle.

Tucking a curling lock of hair behind her ear, she nods and sets it on a low leaf of the flower near me. The tiny creature's head pokes up in the air, skittish. Finding the end of the leaf, it slides down the stem.

“Not all life loves the sun. Some crave to slither to the silent comfort of shadows where they’re safe.”

Finding the ground again, the worm picks up its pace and slides right back into its hole, soundless and quick.

“Sometimes life roots downward, groping blindly for that hidden home, the one not so easily seen. Even flowers.” Her dirt covered fingers pull the end of the sunflower’s root out before tucking it back in and covering the dark hollow with a soft, gentle pat.

Emotions roil inside me, a cacophony of rightness. Bio-luminescence in caves and deep waters. Late nights staring at the ceiling with just the warm weight of my dogs. The bottom of a pool and endless quiet.

It isn’t the Underworld that makes me uneasy and unsure. It’s Olympus.

I don’t belong here.

The realization strikes me dumb. I can’t phrase what that little worm of a story meant to me, only that it was monumental. I want to do something for her.

“Let me show you how to drive.”

Her eyes go wide. “You’d do that for me?”

 _I’d do anything for you._ Thank god I’m not drunk anymore, or I’m sure that would have spilled right out.

She gets in the car and flips through the radio as I drive to an abandoned parking lot near the border of the Underworld. Her choice of classical music surprises me. Everything about her does. Barren, black trees surround the space. It’s dark and cold, so I grab a fuzzy plaid jacket from the back and wrap it around her when we get out to trade places. 

“Okay?” I rub her arms from the outside. Fates, I’ve never seen anything cuter than her swallowed by my jacket. 

“It’s fine.” Her throat bobs and lips part as she stares at me. For a moment, that spark between us shines again. Perhaps I’m not out of the running for her affection. Then, she blinks and looks around. “It’s really pretty here, in a melancholy way.”

“That’s generous of you. The border to my realm is just over there. Death and more death. What blooms in the Underworld?”

“Snowdrops. Crocus. Hellebore.” Her fingers count out, and my heart beats faster with each new plant she mentions. Her instinct is to reject _no_ , to see the best in everything. “Lenten Rose. Phlox. Witch Hazel.”

They’re winter blooming flowers, not quite the same thing as the Underworld, but the spirit is there. She looks at this perpetual twilight land, my birthright, without malice or disgust. She really does think it’s... _pretty_.

“You know a lot about plants.”

“Comes with growing up on a farm, ya know.” Her hands go up, dancing at me in two wiggling waves. It’s more than that though. She’s clever...smarter than anyone else in the class and still only a freshman.

"How is pilot data collection going for your mid-term research pitch? Have you started writing up your methods?" I close the buttons of my large jacket when I see her shiver, not realizing it would pull her closer to me. The almost intimacy between us is palpable. "Do you need any help finding resources in the literature?"

“I’m good.” Her lips pinch to one side as she looks up, like she doesn’t want to tell me.

“Your project is a secret?”

“Something like that. I am in a bit of a pickle though.” Her voice is so soft I have to lean closer. “My plants, they aren’t…It’s not growing right in the container.”

I lean closer, this time drawn by the two bright orbs of her eyes, like she’s the bio-luminescent animal and I’m her prey. 

“Don’t forget the most important element,” I say.

“What’s that?” Breathless, she presses up. Her fingers curl in my shirt collar, eyes half lidded as she stares at my mouth.

“Oxygen.”

She pulls me down, fusing her lips to mine. I hold her gently, never have I held something more precious. The first fluttering kiss is followed by a firmer pressing one. I don’t push it. I need to know she wants me. When she digs her fingers into my hair in demand and floats in the air, I know. I want to shout with joy, but all that comes out is a rumble as I kiss her back, desperate, like she could disappear at any moment.

My hunger for her isn’t eased, it only grows. I grasp her lower back with one hand, cupping the other at her nape as I draw her warmth against me. The timid stroke of her tongue against my lips is an entreaty I can’t deny. The taste of her is intoxicating as the kiss deepens. Syrup soaked pancakes. A moonless night sky. Rain soaked earth. I need all of this and so much more.

When my grip tightens, she trembles and hums. With the soft slip of our mouths and each wicked gasp, I fall deeper. Our lips twist together, never satisfied. The air around us feels cool as our heat rises. Her fingernails trace over my neck, like she’s inscribing her name into my skin. Our breaths become one, sawing out as her sweet scent washes over me. Her lashes flutter, eyes closed, so I close mine too and let myself just be. The sensation of touch, grasping and soft, the smell of fresh blooms, and the sound of each stolen breath seems magnified without sight.

After the initial surprise and desperate crashing together, we move to a slower, wondrous exploration of tongues. Like whispers without words, we melt together. Everything falls away in a weightless haze.

A loud _WOOF_ makes her flinch, and we break apart. With a dazed, heavy lidded expression on me, she floats back to the ground. Her hand closes the gaping collar of the oversized jacket as she looks behind her.

I glare at Cerberus, who sits just inside the border of the Underworld, big tail wagging.

“Oh snickerdoodles, that was inappropriate. I’m sorry.”

“It was...gods...nothing to be s-s-sorry about,” I stammer, then pause. The reality is, I’m her teacher, even if it’s just a lab class. _Cock and balls._ I’m ready to quit my job - who needs it?! - but my cooler head prevails. Something binds us together, I know it. And I can wait. I’ll think of something. In the meantime... _change the subject, doofus._

“Your chariot awaits.” I bow and sweep a hand to the car. _Nerd_! I shout, internally, but the voice fades away at her giggle. 

We get back in the car, and I show her the basics before we get started. I keep my hands to myself, vowing to take everything slower than my body wants. We’ll get to know each other first. More will come with time.

Slow, careful loops around the lot turn to parking practice, then a jaunt down a side road. As we drive, I realize she was right that driving a car is a lot like driving a tractor. She’s a natural with a lead foot, but I can’t begrudge her that. The speed excites me. 

“Whatcha thinkin’ about?” she asks as we turn a corner. We’re only a few minutes from the school. I can tell she’s worried about the kiss, at least I think that’s what the furtive scrunch at her brow means.

“Moving to the Underworld,” I blurt out.

She looks over briefly in surprise before snapping her head back to the road.

“I mean...not now...maybe after this semester. The idea always intimidated me, but maybe I never saw the bigger picture.” It’s hard to clarify all the moving pieces in my head, and the words come slow. “Maybe with the right…”

“Dream?” She glances over quickly.

I was gonna say mindset, but she put a sweeter spin on it. “Yeah. With the right dream for the Underworld, it could be an adventure.”

“Your home.” She doesn’t look over, but the ghost of a smile plays over her lips. The way her eyes light up with pride gives me the oddest feeling.

I’m driving down a new path. My heart sits in my throat and my limbs remember the heat of her body so recently against me. I know where I’m going, but I’m also completely lost. In the best possible way.

The beings who call the Underworld home deserve a good king. They have few utilities and the waterways are polluted. My laziness is their doom, and it doesn’t sit right. There are ways for life to exist in the dark, secret places.

Plans click into place, long dormant ideas for expanding my research and breaking ground on new Underworld facilities.

Her hand presses the sunroof button. Sliding it open, she peers at me. “Stand up, Hades. Let the wind flow through your hair. Tell me what it’s like.”

It’s the first thing I did with the sunroof on my mom’s car as a kid. I take off my light jacket and stand up through the sunroof. The cold air seeps through the sweat damp cotton. I feel small and powerless with my arms lifted to the brightening sky like fragile wings. But the wind burns my eyes so I turn backward. The Underworld’s horizon is a blend of blue and violet. Dusk is always better than dawn. Its richer colors promise a time to rest. With the speed of the car, my hair rushes in front of my face in a tangling dance, as if the darkness itself beckons me.

Persephone loops a strong, warm arm around my leg. My body tingles with awareness of her chaotic energy, so full of everything I need.

“What does it feel like?” she yells over the roar of air and engine and road.

 _Like every moment I’m with you_ , I want to say, _overwhelmed, uprooted and floating_. But I don’t say that.

“Magic.” I lay my hand over hers and squeeze. “Like anything is possible.”


	7. Compromise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Kal11915 and VerdiWithin for workshopping parts of this with me! I was too embarrassed about my unexpected hiatus to have this beta read, but the two of them really helped boost me!
> 
> Song on Repeat: ["Coexist"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D176csbsuw) by Tontario x Leo Islo

_I kissed him._

I hit _Send_ and throw my phone across the room.

My face heats, stomach tightening into a knot. I’ve been holding the secret in all night, the delicious, terrifying, obsessive reality of what happened yesterday.

I kissed Hades.

I was floating. Literally. I didn’t even know I _could_ fly until yesterday. Something about being near him sets every nerve ending on fire. Standing there in the twilight space, the air seemed to sparkle around us. My whole body was alive, every sense trained on him. It had felt so… right. And then I flew up to meet his lips. Even now, I catch myself turning slowly weightless and floating when I think back on that moment, his forest scent, that broad, strong body, and the cool aura that draws me in.

I pat at my sides and clutch the bedding because it’s happening again.

I kissed Hades, and I had to tell.

The only person I wanted to talk to was the last person I expected. Ares. The chime of my phone is faint, muffled below the rumpled clothes it slid under, but it makes me jump. That was fast.

 _Why Ares? Why Ares? Why Ares?_ I reprimand myself for being selfish and impulsive. I just know he’ll be upset. 

The problem is, Artemis hates Hades, something about his tainted family full of assholes. She doesn’t even know him though, and I’m not about to get into an argument with her, so I keep my trap shut. 

Then there’s Eros. While we’ve been bunking with god of sex for a couple days, he’s so cool and sophisticated. Mooning over a guy I kissed seems a bit too complicated for a casual, not to mention sexually experienced, friend I barely know. 

The only person who would understand, who even KNOWS about my feelings for Hades is Ares. And after everything we did in the shower the other day, I feel… guilty. But he’d said we were friends. He said I didn’t owe him anything, that he’d felt something like that himself for someone else. So… I took a chance.

The phone chimes again, overloud in my ears. My heart races with a mixture of dread and anticipation. I roll out of the bed like a soggy lump of hashbrowns and slowly crawl on my tummy to grab it. My body puts in minimal energy for what I’m sure will be an irritated or maybe even angry response from the friend I want to talk to, the friend I’ve come to rely on. He happens to also be the friend I was naked and coming hard for only a couple days ago.

I take a deep breath with eyes closed and turn the phone over. Another chime dings. Clicking the screen back on, I’m on edge and full of fear.

> _Persephone: I kissed him._
> 
> _Ares: hades?_
> 
> _Ares: that dorky blueberry lol im happy for you p_
> 
> _Ares: i should be happy right… he didn’t fuck up did he?_ 😈

I read it again. _I’m happy for you._ He answered within a minute, like… like… I text back.

> _Persephone: You’re not mad at me?_
> 
> _Ares: mad at u?_ 🤔

Am I crazy for thinking he’d be mad at me? I pick up the phone and call, my heart twisted in conflicted emotions.

“Hey sunshine!” he answers.

A startled sob breaks free. I bend over and let it all out. Harsh inhales followed by shuddering, teary exhales. I can’t believe I held all this in last night. I wanted to be free and fearless with Ares and then Hades, like a true girl gone wild 19-year-old. But everything seemed to crash back in on me last night, leaving me full of confusion.

“P!” His urgent shout is a tinny, echoing sound from where I grip the phone against my knee. I sniff hard, shake my head, and walk to the window.

“Don’t yell. I’m sorry,” I say. The words float up on instinct as I watch Artemis and Eros at target practice. My roommate is the most competitive person I know, and Eros is her perfect counterpart - super talented and completely nonchalant about it.

“You’re crying. What happened?”

“I made out with another guy is what happened. I feel terrible after…” I gulp, in a quieter voice. “After what we did the other day.”

“Ohhhhh you’re feeling guilty?” His thoughtful voice turned hard again, “Did Hades make you feel guilty? If he fucked up, I swear I’ll-”

“I didn’t tell him.” I thump my head against the glass.

“But you’re telling me.” He pauses. “You’re ashamed of what we did? Wanna keep it a secret?” His voice is tight, like he’s trying to be strong, but there’s hurt. 

“No! Fates, no. I just… wanted to talk to someone.”

“Oh.” His tone lightens and I can hear the rustle of clothing as he walks. Is he pacing? Maybe I should pace? I bite my upper lip and thump my head against the glass again instead. He starts talking again, “You wanna talk? About me or him or-”

“Both,” we say at the same time. He doesn’t say anything else so I soldier on. “About you and about him. It all just… happened so fast. I was being reckless and not really thinking about anyone except myself. It’s only now I’m feeling like doodoo. I don’t want… I want you and I to be okay. And...he’s your cousin. You know him. I just figured it would be easier to talk to you first, then figure out how to talk to him.”

I’m rambling but it hits me like a brick to the face. Tears fall, silent this time, as I fall back on my bed with a soft whump. “I trust you, Ares. I guess I’m realizing that I don’t really know Hades like I know you.”

“We were friends first, that’s why. Nothin’ better or worse about it.”

“If by friends you mean compulsory lab partner and bully, then yeah.” My tone is teasing.

“You know you love me.” He chuckles. “Let’s talk then, angel. None of this cryin’ okay?”

“Can’t promise that.” I wipe away fresh tears clouding my vision. It happens when I’m happy, sad, hungry, sometimes even when I’m bored.

“You like him? Tell me what’s on your mind.”

“You are, right now.”

“You still feel guilty? Don’t bother.”

“Wait, why not?”

“Not worth it.”

“You are worth it! Your feelings matter too.”

After a heavy sigh, his tongue makes a farting noise. “My feelings are this. I didn’t really think of you in a sexy way until, well… until the day you left class crying.”

“Ok. Same.” I’d never seen the softer side of him before then.

“What we have is new. Surprising, really. I’d like to get to know you, but you don’t know half of my baggage. I kinda like that you don’t, but it also doesn’t feel that real unless you do.”

“I see your bratty side, and it might sound weird, but I like that you let me be rude to you.”

“Be mean to, mama. I love it.” His voice quiets. “But seriously, lust for violence is part of what I’m about, and that’s not always pretty.”

I’m always laughing like crazy or angry with him, there’s no middle ground. “You make me feel like I can rage, and it wouldn’t be wrong. I guess I’m just realizing how weirdly safe it feels to not always the good girl.”

“Bad girls are my favorite.”

Me… a bad girl? I put a hand over the giggle that’s bursting out. “I’ve never let myself get really angry before.”

“I saw you at the pool. It was fuckin’ beautiful. And it’s okay to let go sometimes, but I’m the wrong guy to teach you temperance of that, so ya know....” He chuckles. “Anyway, we’re good. Friends or whatever. You didn’t owe me shit after our washy-washy moment. You can fuck around with anyone you want, including my nerdy ass cousin.”

I’m smiling and still crying. Gods, I need to hydrate. “I wish I could hug you.”

“I’ll give you a big, sexy squeeze at the party tonight.”

“Oh yeah! Eros is making a huge deal about it, says his sister is coming.” 

“His sister?”

I roll over on my stomach and put the phone on speaker, fiddling with the seedlings I keep near my nightstand. After another half hour of chatting with Ares, I feel better. By the end, the only tears are from laughing at his impersonation of Hades and every other person in our lab class. Not only that, we have a plan for our final project. Everything’s looking up.

Without knocking, Artemis barges into our room. “That god really gets on my nerves.”

“Gotta go. I’ll text you after lunch,” I hurry to end the call and sit up in bed, braiding my hair which lengthened to my waist from all the crying and laughing.

“Who was that?” Artemis’ eyes narrow.

“My lab partner.” I shrug. I like Artemis but she’s judgy about most people, and I don't want to get into boy stuff with her. She wouldn’t understand. “What’s up?”

“We’re going shopping!” Eros sings the last word, his head poking sideways into the room.

Artemis shakes her head. “We are not goin-”

“Fine. Don’t go, but Persephone is.” Eros strolls over to me. He pulls me up with both hands then circles me with an assessing look. I’m wearing a crop top Barley Mother shirt and loose harem pants, the softest clothes I own, washed a thousand times, but under his scrutiny they feel like rags. “Let me guess… you buy underwear in bulk?”

Thirty minutes later, we stroll through a shopping mall where one corner is the size of the entire grocery store back home. Who knew any place had this many clothes? Full sections for different _types_ of clothes. Kids. Teens. Plus size. Underwear. Socks. Makeup. Shoes. My head spins each time we round a new corner. Eros insists on paying, and he has his own ideas, so I follow quietly behind him, checking my texts. 

Hades texted a photo of his dog - a tiny, white fluffy one with a snarling face. 

> _Hades: Ruff day ahead. Lots of meetings. Hope you’re well._

I hadn’t answered yet, didn’t want to interrupt his meetings, but moreso I didn’t know what to say. After talking with Ares, I felt lighter, like maybe I wasn’t a crappy person for being single and playing the field.

> _Persephone: I’m doing grrrrreat_ 🐶 _Sorry about your long day._

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Some beings just have no sense.” Eros shakes his head, looking at his own phone as he waits for the personal shopper to bring out the clothes he requested.

“Who are you judging now?” I kick his foot.

He turns his phone to me and the unsmiling, rail thin woman with crimson skin glaring at the camera makes my heart stop. “This dumb bitch.”

Minthe.

He shakes his head. “She had a perfectly sweet sugar daddy and somehow managed to turn it into a huge dumpster fire. _Treat ‘em mean. Keep ‘em keen._ What a load of horse shit.” He gasps, fingers dancing over his lips as he eyes widen with glee. “Oh. Ohhhh. Okay, little miss. Now this is interesting.”

When he looks at me with a cheshire cat grin, I grimace. This can’t be good.

“I uploaded a photo of you with those gluten free, sugar free, lactose free cookies this morning. Guess who just commented?”

I shrug and distract myself with the soft, thick fabric of a neatly folded turtleneck on the table. The moss green color isn’t my favorite, but it’s thick and well constructed.

“Hades!”

I clutch the fabric to my chest.

“He commented, and I quote.” Eros coughs, making his voice deeper, and waggles his eyebrows. “I love sweet treats!”

“He _WHAT_?” I squeak and cover my face with the shirt in my hand, hoping to disappear.

“Minthe is gonna freak! And OMG no, no, no on that shirt. Ewww.” Eros snatches the top from my hand, kisses my knuckles, and stuffs my hands in the oversized pockets of my pants. “Chartreuse with your skin tone? I mean, it’s not impossible, but a turtleneck to boot? There are sexier ways to get choked, girl.”

“Why would I wanna get choked?”

“You sweet, clueless cinnamon roll.” Eros shakes my shoulders lightly until I’m looking at him. Wow, he’s pretty. His eyelashes are long and perfectly curled, and his full lips purse to a suppressed smile as he jerks his head sideways. “Go pick out some socks over there. Let me handle the clothes. Your instincts are a disaster. If it’s Hades you’re after, I know just the trick. Pastel goth!”

I reach my arms around him and give the startled, rosey god a big hug. He’s been there for us the last couple days, and I know we mostly just give him a lot of grief. “Thanks, Eros, for all your help. I appreciate it.”

“Hermes was right. You _are_ an odd duck… in a good way.” Eros turns me around and shoves me towards the next section over. “Get your bouncy buns to work finding some socks. Ankle length. Lace ruffle. White.”

I tune him out as I reach the section. My fingers trail over the multi-colored underwear in all shapes and colors. Socks are much the same. The variety amazes me. There’s nothing like this back home. How does one decide with so many options? I pick one up and smell it just because I’m weird, but the scent is more plasticy than the warm cotton and fabric softener smell of home.

A ding tells me I got an email. I fish my phone out of my pocket. Just as the screen lights up, my phone chimes again, notifying me of a new text. Weird. What’s going on? I read the email first.

> _From: Hades Kronuson, PhD_
> 
> _To: Advanced Molecular Biology Lab, Section 3001_
> 
> _Good afternoon,_
> 
> _This serves as notice that Dr. Chiron will be the new teaching assistant for this section. I’ll be teaching Section 3002 for the semester. I’ve briefed him on your progress, and nothing in the curriculum will change. All further inquiries about your work or this class should be directed to him._
> 
> _Best,_
> 
> _Dr. Kronuson_

My heart drops. I back up two paces to rest against the mirrored divider wall and crouch down trying to make sense of my racing thoughts.

Hades is switching classes. The message was so terse and professional. Was it too terse? Cold even? I swallow, but my throat is dry. I’m… confused, terrified at first that I’d never see him again. Then, the excitement kicks in. Is this because of me? Surely not. What a drastic step to take for someone he barely knows.

I barely know him, don’t I?

The thought clangs around in my stomach and vibrates up my chest until my inhales are short, tense draws of air. It feels true but not true. I do know him, don’t I?

My phone chimes again. Right, a text. I stand up and check my messages, leaning against the wall.

> _Hades: My long day just took an amazing turn._
> 
> _Hades: Did you read your email?_

I blink at the words. Is this implying what I think it is? Everything is moving so fast. I want to talk to him, but gods, what do I say? 

_We kissed and I think I wanna do that again._ _  
_ _I screwed around with Ares._  
_You’re not my teacher._ _  
_ Am I a bad person for being confused?

I drop my head back against the mirrored wall and roll my cheek to the side. The cool surface and regular fogging proof of my breaths calm my racing mind.

This is good. Isn’t it? He’s not my teacher anymore. He wants to talk. Oh god, what if it’s about my project and not that impetuous kiss I sprung on him? No, he liked the kiss. I could tell. Don’t doubt yourself now!

My tight grip on the pair of socks in my hand makes the cardboard wrapping wrinkle. Ankle length, white. The frilly, eyelet design at the top are peacock feathers on closer inspection. Is my sense for men as bad as my sense of fashion? I grunt, irritated at the chaotic, nonsensical turn of my thoughts.

“Hey honey.” A familiar, musical voice surprises me. I throw the socks back on the table and stuff my hands in my pockets. Talking to Hades can wait. I’ve got a bigger problem.

“Hera!”

She inspects me, smiling at the childlike image of myself on the shirt as she sips the coffee cup in her hand. I shuffle my feet wishing I hadn’t worn my rattiest clothes. “Good to see you, Kore Cob.”

I grind my teeth together in irritation at the childhood name. 

She laughs. “Okay, that’s not fair. It was an awful nickname, wasn’t it?”

“Mama and Aunt Hestia never managed to forget it.” Despite hating the name, my memories of the few family events I was allowed to go to are happy ones. Hera always kept her eye on me. Unrepentant capitalist, Ares called her. Subverts laws, Hades warned. But she’s only ever been family to me.

“What do you think about the proposal I made to clean up Styx. It should be a cinch and get you some extra spending money.” Hera tosses her cup in the trash but the cardboard sleeve misses. 

I reach down and pick it up, wondering how much careless environmental damage the family business has done. Ecosystems are so fragile despite their resilience. I shake the little piece of trash between us. “We have to be careful, Hera. Even something as small as this. The butterfly effect, ya know?”

She plucks it from my hand and gently drops it in the recycling. Her white pencil skirt and sleek, silky button down is perfectly tailored to her slim figure. Not a hair is out of place in her low chignon, but she heaves an exhausted sigh and turns to me. “Sometimes I’m just moving so fast, I don’t see these things. Help me, Persephone. The family could use you. Mother likes the idea of you helping us on this.”

Mother with a capital M. Metis. The big boss. She’s always just been Grammy, my hawk-eyed elder who wore furs and smelled like sweet smoke. But part of growing up is seeing who the people close to me really are to everyone else. Hera is my aunt, someone who’s only ever been kind to me, even as a dorky kid. To Mama she’s to be avoided, to Hades some kind of criminal. Even Ares, someone who likes her, has misgivings. _Make sure your values align_ , he said.

“I’m not like you.”

Her brows slash down in a V.

“That came out wrong.” I reach out to grab her hand, instantly calmed by the warmth of her skin against mine. I miss touching people. So much. Easy hugs between neighbors. Falling asleep in the field with my friends. I’ve felt alone in Olympus, more alone than I realized until recently. “You’re just finishing business school, right? Ready to strike out on your own and make a name for yourself.”

Hera’s thumb rubs over my knuckles. She’s not much taller than me, way shorter than Mama, but her energy is commanding, like a tight shield. I can’t look away.

“Nothing I do is just for myself. Everything is about family, and family is about compromise. We women have to stick together, but your mother is a stronger-alone type of person. How has that worked out for her?”

Mama is overworked, tired, and lonely. It’s a plain fact, and though I can’t bring myself to say it, even to my aunt, she can see it in my face.

“That’s who she is,” Her says. “But what about you?”

My mind races. I love being around people and have always craved it. She’s right that Mama doesn’t, but the rest of our family... “I don’t know. Heck, I don’t even know who I am yet.” I decide to be straight with her. “Mama didn’t want me to speak to you.”

Hera bites the inside of her cheek and looks away, a muscle clenching in her jaw. “That’s unfortunate. We miss her but also…” She turns back to me, the same glint of ferocity in her eyes I know well from Mama. She grips my hand tight. “I resent her too. You’re my family, and she kept you away, because what? We aren’t monsters.”

“The first thing you mention is putting me to work. Just what Mama doesn’t want.”

“This is a legitimate government contract!” Her free hand shoots up alongside her voice, before she takes a deep breath. “Do we want to use you? Yes. That’s what family does. You can use us too. We use _each other_ because we must to survive, to thrive, to always be on top so we never have to be on the bottom.”

I gulp as she leans closer.

“Bringing you back into the family is to keep you safe. Alone in this city and the wolves will start to circle. People need to know who you are. Everything we do is about reputation. Our bad reputation has been good to us, but I’m thinking strategic now.”

Her smirk is dangerous but intriguing. I’m not sure what she means, but one thing is plain. “You have ambition.”

“You see?” Hera nods, the start of a crazy smile. “You see what we could be?”

I don’t, but it feels big and dangerous. My heart flutters like a cornered animal. I want to be closer to my family, but I need distance from this. “You can be anything you want Hera. I want that for you. But what I want is to be a freshman. Sleep in. Date. Make mistakes. I want more freedom, not less.”

Hera backs up a step and drops my hand. The lacy, almost childlike ankle socks I held before she picks up. “And the job with Styx?”

“Is it true we polluted the waters?”

Hera rolls her eyes. “Ouranus and the other titans polluted them in their wars. Mother took advantage of the metals exposed by the war, but it wasn’t all our fault. He just passed the blame to us. That’s why he’s willing to pay us to clean up the mess. Think about it.”

“Our bad reputation has been good to us,” I repeat the words back to her.

She nods and shrugs. “It has, but this contract is the first step in a new direction. You have powers with plants and stuff. If environmental protection is your thing, I’m sure we could-”

Her voice fades as I fold my arms over each other and glare at her. “Doing what’s right is my thing. What’s just and fair.”

“Listen. Help us. We could hire a company to do this cleanup, but you...you would be so much better.”

“Why me?”

“Well it’ll save money.” She’s not looking at me. _Liars never look you in the eye, ‘cuz when they do you can tell_ , Mama always says.

“What’s the real reason?”

Her blue eyes snap to me as she drops the socks back on the table and fists her hands on her hips. “You’re powerful. No one can heal Styx water and you did it with a child’s song. I want people to see what you can do. Imagine the good press if the shining star of our family, new to town and unsullied by our reputation, comes in and rolls up her sleeves.”

“Good PR.” I nod. It makes sense, and it’s something I can live with, assuming the family is willing to change, to be more above-board.

“You’re the youngest and brightest among the women in our family. If anyone can show Olympus our potential for good, it’s you.” She tucks my hair behind my ear and I shiver, my arms falling down, interlacing fingers together in front of me. “You can help us change. It’s who you are.”

Who I am. I always considered myself to have b-grade powers, but that’s not the way Hera looks at me. Or Hades. Or Ares. Their validation is addicting. It almost scares me, because I want to figure things out for myself. Like my erratic powers. When I’m angry, it pours out of me like there’s something more beneath the surface. I didn’t even know I could fly until yesterday.

“You really think I can do it?”

“I know you can, honey.” She squeezes my shoulder and winks at me. “You’re Demeter’s daughter after all. And I never knew a stronger or more determined bitch in my whole life.”

A startled laugh bubbles up, and I slap my hand over my mouth.

My instinct has always been to trust Hera. My whole life I looked up to her. She’s sneaky and clearly has grand plans, but she’s family, and I trust her when she says family is everything. Mama and Hades black and white view of her is at odds with my intuition. Just like befriending Ares, I need to trust my gut, and it’s telling me that Hera isn’t all bad. Is she perfect? No. Does she have her own agenda? Absolutely. Our desires may be different, but they aren’t mutually exclusive. And maybe it’s crazy, but if I’m part of the family, maybe I can help change us for the better.

“I’ll do it.”

Hera blinks, head pulling back in surprise. 

“Mama is more closed off than I want to be. At the same time, I can’t let family define me. I want to define me.”

Hera assesses me, and a range of emotions pass behind her eyes, but they could all be a mirage, a reflection of my own doubt and confusion. She claps her hands together loudly before extending one arm straight out to me.

“A deal is a deal.”

I grab her hand and shake twice. I’ll have to call Mama to explain the agreement, but I know I can make her see reason. This is my life now. I’ll always be her little girl, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be my own woman. 

“I have two conditions.” I hold up my hand and count with my fingers. “One. It doesn’t interfere with my schoolwork - part-time and set hours. Education is important to me.”

Hera nods once and lifts an eyebrow.

“Two.” I take a deep breath. “Give me your honest opinion on Hades.”

Several blinks and one confused smile later, she cocks her head. “Hades. Not Ares?”

I know Ares. He’s a bright spot of mayhem with a soft heart for women. We work, but the puzzle piece doesn’t fit right. Hades, though… he fits. So good, it’s almost too perfect to be true. Ouranos is no saint, and if the rumors about the three young kings are true, the apples don't fall far from the tree. But Hades seems different. I worry I don’t know him well enough to see the rotten parts. Am I filling in the gaps with what I want rather than what he is? Ares seems to think of him as pretty harmless, but he’s a guy. If anyone would tell it like it is, maybe Hera would. She’s the goddess of relationships after all.

I nod. “Hades.”


	8. A Different Kind of Romance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanks as always to Sophie for the beta read and also [Ocean's Away](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oceans_Away/pseuds/Oceans_Away) for all the editing and encouragement. Check her out! I'm Forrest Gump running around a corner every time she posts.
> 
> Song on Repeat: ["Pretty Ugly"](https://youtu.be/zfbtjvi9oro) by Tierra Whack and ["In Your Eyes"](https://youtu.be/7Kk3nma1h5A) by Nick Wilson

“No glove, no love,” I say.

"Thanks, Ares." The pizza delivery guy smirks at the two condoms I slapped in his hand with the cash tip.

I laugh to myself, remembering the campy safe sex slogans Aphrodite and I yelled out one after the other when a speaker promoting eternal maidenhood visited our human sexuality class.

_Don’t be a fool. Cover your tool._

_Can’t go wrong if you shield your dong._

_When you slip between their thighs, condomize._

I readjust one of the dozen buckets holding rubbers and lube that litter the tables, ledges, and even hang from plants. One can never be too prepared. 

_Love is cleaner with a packaged wiener._

_Cover your stump before you hump._

_Get consent or get bent._

The party is already in full swing. Piping hot pizza is here, two kegs sit on either side of the snack table, and Hera brought some kind of fancy champagne.

I scratch my neck and pick up half a dozen condoms. _Safe sex is in the palm of your hand._ Sighing, I stuff them in my pocket.

I could get laid tonight with little effort. An orgy would be a nice change of pace. But best case scenario? A cursory check of my phone shows Persephone is almost here but no other new notifications. I’m afraid to hope.

An overloud “Shhhhhhh” has me turning. Hermes glances furtively over his shoulder before opening something that looks like a donut box. I have no doubt it’s pot brownies based on his cagey demeanor. The purple Fury, Meg, and a cute river nymph with sunset colored hair giggle to each other as they pick out treats. They aren’t shy about the heart eyes they give the messenger god either.

It’s gonna be a good night, I hope. College kids don’t need much. Food and drinks are out and the DJ is set up, but it’s the pool that’s the main attraction, any excuse to wear as little clothing as possible.

I survey the space. Ouranos made sure the family’s cliffside complex had a luxury pool, landscaped gardens, and a posh clubhouse. It’s nice, but nothing really belongs to me. Throwing parties is a way to put my stamp on the place. I don’t own much, but I can smash people together and make our lives a little more fun.

A stunning green Nereid with dozens of spiral tattoos dips her long fin in and out of the pool. She’s new. No surprise a shirtless Poseidon perches just out of the water, his fingers trailing over her scales as he stares up in adoration. She nods toward the grotto and slides into the pool without a splash. _Get it, fish boy._

I find another kingly cousin, Zeus, standing just outside the doors of the clubhouse. He toys with a lock of Hera’s hair, smiling like a fool at the white gold tiara she wears. The douche has been obsessed with her for ages. Even peacocks don’t preen like him. Unlike most of their interactions though, she embraces him warmly, whispering in his ear. He looks ridiculous in his garish yellow suit. Hera must know it too, because she slides his satiny jacket off and folds it before placing it on a nearby chair. Definitely an improvement.

Hera looks perfect, as always. Her white halter top swimsuit is hidden by a floor length gauzy cover-up in the same color, held to her lithe frame by a sculptural metal collar. The glittering fabric floats in the breeze, wrapping around her and Zeus. Combined with the dainty crown she wears, her social media handle @queenbunny never seemed more fitting. They hold hands and walk toward the pool area. As much as I can’t stand Zeus, the two match in a surprising way - image conscious and power hungry. She couldn’t have really fallen for the idiot, could she? _Eh, not my business._

“No way!” Eros shouts.

“Yes way!” several feminine voices answer. I know those girls. Everyone calls them _the cult of Aphrodite_. She calls them her _companions_. I’m too nervous to turn around.

A new voice overlays the others. “I told him he would pay, and he did.” 

Fire shoots down my spine at the smooth, song-like voice. It melts over me like hot wax, making the rest of my body quake, desperate to hear it again. I whip around and back up a step, leaning against a nearby column hidden in shadow. I blink slow.

Aphrodite. She came.

My attention goes tunnel vision, drinking in the sight of her after months away. The energy in the space drains as if every light dimmed in a split second. Everything about her is heavy. My cock feels a mile long. My heart pounds like a schoolboy. It’s probably my imagination, but I can scent her on the wind. She’s a wild, summer rose, the kind with tiny, almost invisible thorns that dig deep and sting for days.

The heights of ecstasy with her are unlike any other. But it’s the afterglow I crave. That’s what I imagine now, even as she looks flawless and sparkling, touching everyone with easy affection. I don’t want to see her in a skin tight mini dress. I want her swallowed in my shirt with bedhead. I miss her little snores and the quiet moment when I catch her watching me and she’s staring straight through me. She sees it all, every struggle, the conflict deep within. She knows what it’s like to battle the kind of demons I do because she fights like hell too. 

I never quite understood why she bothered with me. There’s the optics of it. I’m a bad boy athlete, popular for shirtless beach pictures or whatever. We looked good together, and that’s all most people assumed it was. Publicity. What else could explain why we fuck other people? Nobody understands. It's so much messier and deeper than that, at least for me. Ever since this last time she left, I've been telling myself to swear her off. Don't get dragged back into her gravitational pull. She'll just keep leaving you behind. But even with distance, I think about her all the time, apparently talk about her enough for Persephone to take notice. 

We have an understanding, I remind myself. She wouldn’t mind if I was dating Persephone or anyone else. We’re all about free love, easy friendship, and casual sex. But, Gaia help me, I want more.

I crack my neck and pluck at the shirt I’m wearing, the exact clothes I know she loves. My swim briefs are covered by ripped jeans tucked into the top of combat boots and the plain heather grey shirt we wear in ROTC. “ _They’re so soft,”_ she’d coo and promptly steal from me the morning after. She had to have at least half a dozen of these damn shirts. If she kept them. If she cared.

I cross my arms in front of me and circle closer to the side of the pool she’s on, sticking to the darkness of the trees. I’m a starving wolf, hunting, but I’ve got enough awareness to know that with her I might very well be the prey. _Where had she gone? Was she happy? Could I make her happy?_ With Aphrodite, the outward appearance doesn't tell half the story. People see what they want, and she uses that to her own purpose. I have to look closer. I need to. 

A cool, sharp-scented breeze brushes by as someone saunters past me on their way to the pool. Tall and lithe. Blood red skin and long dark hair. Minthe.

A giddy smile breaks free. The night just took a very interesting turn. She’s wearing the exact same pale pink mini dress as Aphrodite. I stand up straight and rub my hands together. A kinder man would grab her arm and warn her to change or leave, but that’s not me. My chest heats with anticipation, knowing the fun to come when Aphrodite sees her. 

The tall nymph pauses in her quick strides, looking sharply left and rushes forward to duck into a tiki bar setup, like she’s hiding. She chats with the bartender but keeps glancing behind her. Curious. I hear the murmur of their voices but not what’s being said, so I dart between the trees and creep closer. I don’t see the source of her delay until she passes right by me, barely a breath away.

Persephone opens the gate to the pool area, looking like a cotton candy dream, good enough to eat. Besides her black platform shoes and leather jacket, she’s covered in shades of pastel pink and purple. A living flower crown sits atop her wavy hair, half wrangled into little buns on the side of her head. I think those are the plants from our experiment. Strange girl. She tugs down her skirt and lilac fishnet crop top that covers her bikini and pulls up her lacy knee highs. With her black platform boots, she looks small instead of tiny.

Busy fiddling with her outfit, she passes right by me. The air perfumes with honeysuckle and baked goods. Precious little thing.

Distracted by her, I don’t notice Minthe stick her leg out until Persephone is falling forward. A pink hand reaches out and grabs Minthe’s elbow. They tumble to the concrete together, falling on their asses. 

“Oh no!” Persephone grunts as she lands, looking around to make sense of what happened.

“Whore!” Minthe yells, flicking Persephone’s ear. “Who in Tartarus are you anyway? No goddess I’ve ever heard of.”

“I’m in your business class. I sit two rows behind you.” Persephone’s voice wavers. She stands up, looking around, embarrassed as she smooths down her skirt.

 _No, no, no. This won’t do._ Rather than jump in physically, I sense a fragile thread of Persephone’s wrath slither toward me. She’s trying to tamp down. I growl and breathe fire into it. Her hand flies to her gut as she watches Minthe stand. 

“The freshman, right? I forgot your name.” Minthe sneers and looks her over. Her voice pitches lower but I’m close enough I can still hear it. “You think Hades is gonna fall for this baby girl getup?”

As the nymph moves closer, hand up to flick Persephone’s other ear, that serpentine anger coils and grows. It electrifies my body, and the sweet metal taste of blood fills my mouth. I groan and push more energy to her. _Use it._

Persephone ducks to avoid the ear flick. Her arm snaps out and grabs Minthe’s wrist as she twists her body, quickly locking her arm behind her. _Shit yeah!_ It’s one of the moves I taught her. 

I round the tiki bar, each exhale pushing new power to her. Battle lust. I stand just behind them, unnoticed only because their backs are to me.

“I don’t care for being grabbed,” Persephone tells Minthe from behind.

“Who are you?” The question has a warble of fear instead of arrogance now. Red vines loop up the nymph’s arms and twist around her long neck, even twining into her hair to pull her back in an arch. Her throat bobs, the whites of her eyes visible when Persephone whispers in her ear.

“Persephone.” Her voice is deep and strong. “I’m the Bringer of Death, bitch.”

Aphrodite strolls up. She inspects the restrained Minthe from head to toe. I cross my arms and lean against the bar willing the butterflies in my stomach to settle. I wanna be cool when we talk again. Calm and collected.

All three beautiful women before me are brimming with anger, each a different vibe. 

Anger born from pride.

Anger born from wrath.

Anger born from envy.

Each leaves a slightly different taste in the back of my mouth, and the auras I sense around them come in varying colors - violet, red, and green. Aphrodite is in her element using the leashed fury she’s made a weapon of her whole life. She wears it well. Persephone’s eyes burn so red she almost looks dazed, like she’s not quite with it. Maybe I pushed her too hard. Minthe’s tight expression covers up a piss her pants fear. She’s an alley cat cornered by wolves. As exciting as the combination of them is, I decide to pull back my power. I could have them scratching each other’s eyes out, but settling it amongst themselves is more fun, since I have no idea what they’ll do. My nipples are tight, skin flushed, and I have a confused boner. Let’s be real, it’s not that confused.

Aphrodite picks at her nails and steps closer to Minthe. 

“Minthe of Kokytos, I see you’ve met the Goddess of Spring. A good friend of my brother’s too. Amazing, isn’t she?” Aphrodite doesn’t even look at Persephone. One sharp, red nail glides under the vines binding Minthe’s throat. “I appreciate the little flower can take care of herself. What I don’t appreciate is you wearing this outfit only hours after I know you saw it on Nymphstagram.” She gets right in Minthe’s face and bats her eyelashes, cocking her head like the soul of innocence. “Are you trying to upset me?”

This is the game of intimidation she plays with others to stunning effect. Where most cower, I feel my dick lurch in excitement. _Down, boy_.

“Minthe was just leaving,” Hades’ deep voice cuts the tension. He strolls up in dark slacks and a button down. To a pool party. The man has a one-note fashion sense, no matter how good it looks on him.

“Help,” Minthe gurgles, struggling to turn in his direction. “Help me.”

“One day, you’ll learn to help yourself, Minthe.” Hades steps forward and grabs her elbow. His gaze flicks to Persephone and softens. The vines wither, and she steps back. Her eyes fall to the ground. He pulls the nymph away, none too gently. “Let me walk you to the exit. You’re clearly not welcome here.”

“Pfft… uugghhhh.” She sputters and rubs at the myriad scrapes the vines left on her skin. She straightens her hair and walks away, looking back once over her shoulder. “Losers.”

Aphrodite’s mouth drops open in a shocked smile, and I can see her eagerness to chase her down, probably rip that dress off and teach her some manners. Any other day, I’d love to see it, but not tonight.

“Hey, beautiful,” I call out. She whips around at the sound of my voice, and her fury snuffs out, replaced by a different kind of heat. Oh.

“Hey, rascal.” Her eyes glimmer, all delight and softness like melted lavender ice cream. 

She steps closer. I do too, drawn to her on instinct.

Her fingers slide through mine. I bring them to my lips, pulling her flush against me. Heat. Her familiar, earthy smell. I can’t keep my hands to myself. I can’t keep my mind straight. No one would believe we were exes. It’s always like this with us, and I never have the heart to fight it. Who could believe we were casual fuck buddies? Was I the crazy one for thinking we were more, for believing we were something big, something unstoppable? 

“I’m Persephone.” A hand reaches out to Aphrodite, all earnest good will.

“Charmed, I’m sure.” Aphrodite assesses her cautiously, with a firmer handshake than the spring goddess expected.

“Y-you’re back in Olympus. I know Eros really missed you.”

“I missed him too. There’s a lot here I missed.” She rakes her fingernails down my back, and I bite back a groan. But for Persephone, the mask she wears is in place. “I lead such a busy life. You have no idea. Influencer, social media consultant, cam girl, model. Thankfully, I can do most of my work from home.”

“Cam girl?”

I often forget how sheltered Persephone grew up. But I’ve got no time to think on that. I rub my jaw. Aphrodite missed me?

“Naked on camera, posing and walking around mostly. Sometimes I pleasure myself or others.” She pets my jawline. “Like this one.”

“You two?” Persephone blinks several times, mouth opening then closing as her gaze darts between us.

“Be careful what you search in Oracle, P.” I chuckle and rearrange Aphrodite so we’re side by side, my arm looped around her neck. “But yeah, we got peeped on once non-consensually. It got out.”

“We made the best of a bad situation.” Aphrodite’s body tenses anytime that debacle comes up, despite the fact she covers it with anger or nonchalance or even acceptance. It was the very definition of turning lemons into lemonade and why I always support her in sex work. Her body is hers to enjoy on her terms. My forearm burns where her nails clutch me tight, even as she chats with Persephone, “Anyway, it’s great money. You should think about it.”

Behind her saccharine smile is a test. Will the other goddess disregard her choices? Mock her? Wriggle in discomfort?

“I...Uh…” 

Hades coughs, having silently returned at some point. _Unseen One_ , no shit. “Aphrodite, can I speak with you?” 

“Sure, you tall drink of blueberry juice.”

Hades stiffens awkwardly and follows her a short distance away. A business deal, no doubt. She’s always in demand.

Persephone watches them go then floats up to sit on the bar top. _When did she learn to fly?_

“I took it too far didn’t I? With Minthe?” Pink hands fidget with the hem of her pale purple skirt as the heels of her clunky shoes tap against each other to a fast, nervous beat. Red tints her eyes again as she gazes behind her where the nymph left moments ago. “B-but she tripped me, and touched me, and called me names.” 

With my hands on her knees, I open them and sidle up close. I grab her cute face with both hands. “You were justified. But if you wanna blame anyone, you should blame me. I was pushing you.”

“Your power?” Those pretty, dark eyes study me, and her hands fall to my forearms. Idly, she traces a scar with her thumb, and the tenderness makes me shiver. “The wrath was all mine though. It’s not all your fault, and honestly...” She looks up with a lopsided grin. “It felt kinda nice to go apeshit.”

My eyebrows rise. “Tired of being nice, huh?”

She giggles and hugs me tight, so tight I feel like a part of her for a brief, warm moment. Her arms barely reach around me, so I nestle in closer and soak her in. I know it’s all about to change. Everything changes so fast these days. We’ll settle into new roles with each other, though.

“So the email today about Hades switching classes, it was about you?”

“Yeah.” She’s almost breathless and pulls back, tucking some hair behind her ear. “We’ll both be working on this Styx cleanup project, so we have time to get to know each other. He wants to take me on a real date, but I get a sense it’s more than that. Something deeper.”

There’s a spark between us too, but the timing isn’t right. Our hearts are wrapped around other people, and that’s okay. I spy Hades leaning against a tree nearby, grimacing a little each time he looks away from Aphrodite and watches us. He’s not happy, but he’s not consumed with jealousy, which I have to appreciate.

“I’m glad you two dorks are figuring it out. He’s a good dude.” My smile grows. I spy a sliver of red heating Hades’ eyes as he looks over again. “And I can’t lie. While it was fun to make him jealous, it’ll be nice seeing him happy. A short sleeved shirt with two buttons undone. He almost looks messy.”

“I guess he does.” She looks over, her eyes tracking him up and down, contented. Her next words surprise me, as quiet as a gentle wave. “I still care about you, you know? In my own way.”

“I know.” My heart squeezes. When we first agreed to make Hades jealous, I thought she could be my blank slate, a girl who’d see me for more than my bluster. And she did, but in a different way. “I feel the same, angel. You wear your heart on our sleeve, and it’s a beautiful thing to see.”

She blinks watery eyes, and a tear slides down her rosy cheek. I lick it away like a heathen. She swats me, even though she’s smiling again. “Never in a thousand years would I think the bad boy hearthrob Ares would be licking my face. The freshman nerd of the class.”

“You mean my genius lab partner?” I pick up her wrist and take a bit out of her candy bracelet.

“I’m a pain in your ass.” Her thumb pokes the center of my chin like a button.

“Fierce as hell is what you are, especially to put up with an asshole like me.”

“A protector.” She pats my cheek. 

A lump forms in my throat. We keep turning every self-insult into a compliment. Is that what friendship is? A tight clasping hug? Someone who sees you as you are and calls it a miracle?

“I’m crude. An oaf. A troublemaker.” I lay my insecurities down in the fragile hope she’ll reinvent them.

“You’re honest. Fun. A fighter. What’s not to love?”

I can’t talk anymore or I’ll cry like a baby, as raw as I am from baring my soul and seeing Aphrodite again. So I hug her tight and spin us in a circle. She squeaks then giggles before I drop her back on the bartop. I want to freeze this moment in time, the flowery scent of her shampoo and her soft body against mine. 

My friend. Maybe one of my first real friends. I knew it earlier on the phone, but it feels more solid now. I didn’t lose anything in her choosing Hades. If anything, I got the bigger prize.

“You know what you taught me?” I ask.

She shakes her head, and short curls dance around her face. I tug one just to watch it bounce.

“Friendship is its own kind of romance.”

Her smile widens, revealing bright white teeth. “You have a golden heart, you know that?”

I lean in and whisper in her ear, “Don't say that too loudly. I have appearances to keep up.”

She pushes back so we're almost nose to nose and jerks her head to the side. “Appearances... with her?” 

“Yeah. She likes to keep it casual.”

“But not you. Why be something you’re not? The way you look at her…” Her eyes are big round pools, like the shining water in a scrying bowl. Truth telling eyes. “Show her who you really are. Tell her what you really feel.”

“She’s as much trouble as me. Maybe more.” I exhale and swallow past the hurt that rises when I remember. “She left without a word. Been gone for months now and never contacted me.”

Persephone turns to watch Aphrodite and Hades talk. I hold back a beat before curiosity gets the better of me and I look over too, still in Persephone’s close embrace. Hades talks while Aphrodite watches us. Careful. Quiet. Like a lioness in the grass.

“I think she’s scared,” Persephone says. “It’s probably why she pushed you away. She trusts you, though. That’s easy to see. I bet she cares about you more than you think. You might not realize this, but you’re very easy to love.”

“Nah….” I chuckle and fidget with her candy bracelet, crunching on another hard, sweet bite. My jaw rolls, tenses, then I look back at Aphrodite’s haughty stance. Her hawk eyes dart over Hades, but when they flick to me, the furrow at her brow fades away. My lips part on a quiet exhale. “You really think so?”

“I do.”

“Well, fuck me. Is it worth the trouble?”

“If you want her heart, it’s always worth the trouble.”

“It’s complicated.” All our past struggles come back to me. Fights. Covering tension with humor. Passive aggression. Aggressive passion. Our spots of light were so bright though. “She’s tough. Hard to get to know.”

“Not like me, huh? Heart on my sleeve, you said. Is that the appeal?”

“Yeah… it is.” I realize that now as I turn back and boop her nose. “Even though I worry that even as a friend, you’re too soft for me. I say a lot of stupid shit. I fuck up all the time. From the jump, first day we really talked, I made fun of your cookies. That’s just who I am.”

“It might’ve hurt my feelings before.” She leans forward until her forehead rests against mine. “But I know you better now.”

“Friends, then?” I ask.

“Friends first.” 

I pick up her hand and wrap her pinky around mine. “Friends always.”

We rest, foreheads touching, so close we can’t even look each other in the eyes. We just sit like that for several breaths. The grass nearby rustles.

“Well, isn’t this cozy.” Aphrodite’s voice has me smiling and Persephone jerking back. I swivel out of her embrace and lean against the bartop. Hades orders a drink, standing close enough that Persephone’s leg brushes against his hip. The goddess of love looks between us, her gaze coming to rest on me, unblinking. “Should I be concerned?”

_She trusts you. She’s scared._

“You know how much I enjoy your concern.” I close the distance and pick her up, gifted with a surprised whoosh of her breath at my ear. 

“Daemon.”

“Temptress.”

She softens in my arms, legs wrapping around me like a serpent. _Show her who you are._ _Tell her what you really feel._ Persephone’s advice emboldens me to not fall back on the old patterns of cocky jokes and playing it safe. I whisper in her ear, “I missed you.”

A loud clapping has us all turning to the natural rock firepit at the other end of the pool. Hera and Zeus stand arm in arm, straight-backed and formal like they’re about to give a commencement speech. The only sign they knew it was a pool party is the fact Hera wears a white bathing suit. Throw a skirt on her and they could be at a gala fundraiser. 

“Friends and family, thank you for being here tonight,” Zeus booms.

I scoff. Did he forget this is my pool party? Whatever. Let’s see what the dumb ass has to say. I nip at Aphrodite’s ear and grip her thighs where they squeeze around my waist, right where she belongs. Damn, she smells good.

“We have an announcement to make.” Hera lifts a glass of champagne and looks to Zeus, looping her arm around his. The lovesick idiot has a huge grin on his face watching her, but says loudly for the crowd.

“We’re getting married!”

They tink glasses and drink them down simultaneously. A full body embrace and kiss follow. Seems sincere. Well, that’s a fucking surprise. Good for them, I guess. 

I kiss down Aphrodite’s neck, licking at her pulse point until I notice her clenched jaw and stiff back. 

“You’re annoyed?” I ask.

“This is _your_ party, not theirs. I don’t like them stealing your spotlight.”

“I’m good, my beauty.” Sure, I wish my family respected me more, but it’s Aphrodite who cares about reputation. This party was an excuse to sow a little chaos, maybe get laid. Having Aphrodite show up already made my night. But if she wanted the attention back on us, who was I to deny her? “Now that you mention it, engagements are a little stuffy for a pool party.”

I walk toward the deep end of the pool and turn my back to it. The DJ starts up. A bass beat thrums through my bones, but I feel her deeper. She’s in my marrow, my very life blood. While Persephone is a blank page, Aphrodite is my favorite book. The dog-eared pages and quotes I know by heart.

I step backward toward the pool. Her eyes dance with mischief, turning to slack-jawed surprise.

“You wouldn’t,” she whispers.

“Take a breath, baby.” I wink and heft her in my arms to make sure she’s secure. Another step back has my heels tottering on the pool’s edge. “Fall with me.”

She gulps and studies me. I expect her to fight it, but she’s always a surprise. Her grin stretches wide. This is the megawatt, child’s smile she gives only me. She presses closer so our bodies fuse at every inch. Her heady scent is everywhere, and her lips ghost over mine. She doesn’t kiss me, just breathes me in. Those big eyes watch me, open and vulnerable.

“Okay.”

She inhales deep. I do too. Air whooshes into my lungs. And as our lips close tight with puffer fish cheeks, we both suppress a cross-eyed smile as I lean back. Our bodies tilt past the point of no control. Gravity takes over.

We fall.

The world whirs around us. A dance of fairy lights. Gasps of surprise. It’s a magic moment. She squeezes me tight and closes her eyes just as the water cracks at my back and swallows us whole. Heavy weight presses us down together.

We fall, again and again, but this time feels different. 

This time I think it's for real.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I chose to make Aphrodite a "cam girl" because in many ancient societies she was considered the patroness of sex workers. To learn more about what you can do to advance the safety and respect of sex workers, check out [SWOP](https://swopusa.org/).
> 
> For a fun peek into the 'morning after' the party for Ares & Aphrodite check out this short scene I wrote, [Waffles and Pancakes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26178016/chapters/64672426). This is my OTP and I can't wait to write more of them :)
> 
> In the meantime...back to Hades and Persephone ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	9. Borrowed Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heads up #1 - This chapter is about 3x longer than my normal chapters, so... buckle up.
> 
> Heads up #2 - NSFW content warning ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to [Oceans Away](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oceans_Away/pseuds/Oceans_Away) for the editorial feedback, Alulah for the science chat, and [Josybro](https://www.instagram.com/josybro/) for the exquisite image at the end.
> 
> Songs on Repeat:  
> ["Little Boy in the Grass"](https://youtu.be/XXVwFvkNTEg?t=302) by Aurora  
> ["Sweet Thing (Live Van Morrison cover)"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAbs_PYfpvQ) by Hozier  
> ["Slip Away"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EVhFTw4igw) by Perfume Genius
> 
> Last Note: The flower/star quote you'll see is a paraphrase of the English poet, Francis Thompson.

I swallow two fingers of scotch in one quick gulp and exhale as the thick glass clinks against the wood of the bar. Fire trails down my throat and lights up my stomach.

Not ten minutes ago, I was a gooey bowl of pudding when Persephone strolled into the party like a motorcycle gang goddess, all leather jacket and see through shirt. Her lacy knee highs had my eyes bugging out and fingers itching to drag them down. But the whole interaction with Minthe and my subsequent chat with Aphrodite left me a bit stiff.

When the bartender asks if I want another, I wave him off. Hopefully, the worst of the night is over, and I can enjoy the fact the most beautiful goddess I’ve ever seen is sitting on the bar top just to my left. Her lace covered knee rests against my hip.

We kissed yesterday. I still can't believe it. No obstacles stand in the way of getting to know her better. Judging by our flirty texts, I think I have a good chance. I take a deep breath and turn around, but find Persephone’s eyes trained on someone else. Two someones.

Ares and Aphrodite wrap around each other like two-flavored sherbet swirl. They whisper, planning some fresh trouble no doubt. Although they’re the messiest couple in Olympus, their rock-solid familiarity with each other has always pricked a bit of jealousy in my heart.

“You dressed down tonight.” Persephone tugs at my untucked shirt.

I clear my throat. “Not too out of place, I hope. I’ve got swimwear underneath too.”

“Me too.” Her thumb flicks over at the string of her bikini under the see-through mesh shirt. My gaze roves down to the curving swell of her chest, almost obscene in lushness. No, no, no, her eyes are up there. Her brows scrunch, and she fiddles with the zipper of the leather jacket. Is she nervous? “Eros bought the outfit, and I borrowed the jacket from Artemis. It’s not exactly my normal sty-”

“It suits you.” She’s gorgeous and enchanting and should never doubt that. I grasp the dark blue skull pendant hanging at her neck. It has bright, red stone eyes in the shape of hearts.

“You really think?”

My lips quirk in amusement remembering how easily she restrained Minthe. “The sight of you fills me with glorious dread.”

“Scoundrel!” She grabs my collar and pulls me in. Her lips press against mine. It’s a quick peck, but leaves me started that she would kiss me in public, in front of everyone here like… like she doesn’t have a fear in the world. Before I can react, a loud clapping has us both turning.

My brother and Hera step forward. The next part happens in a blur.

Zeus is getting married? My body feels numb, my mind a buzzing bunch of nothing. Married? My younger brother. Well damn. I guess I should’ve seen that coming, but he didn’t even… mention it to me. Sharp hurt lances through my chest, but I think about what I would’ve said if he had been open with me. I’d have told him it was a terrible idea, maybe even laughed. It’s the way we are with each other, down to how I locked myself in the cabin’s bathroom rather than talk to them about the woman I care about.

As brothers, we aren’t really that close. Why do we have such a hard time talking? It’s just so hard to open up with them. While I stand shocked to stillness, Persephone hops down and races forward, beaming and hugging her aunt.

Zeus catches my eye, and all I can think to do is smile and nod. He winks at me and raises his champagne glass. Genuine happiness, almost childlike, colors his expression, not the hidden plots and games I’ve come to recognize with him.

I try to look at my brother and Hera anew. How does Persephone see them? She shakes my brother’s hand, and they chatter on for long moments of easy conversation. As she turns to head back, I can’t stop inspecting the newly engaged couple. I have to admit that Hera and Zeus look dashing together. My brother’s garish, gold pants don’t seem out of place next to Hera’s over-the-top translucent cape. She’s even wearing a tiara for fates’ sake.

_Smack. Splash._

Cold water stings my face. Persephone dances away from the chlorinated wave and laughs watching where Ares and Aphrodite disappear into the pool. He fell in with his combat boots. Imagining the mess makes my teeth grind.

“Pool party!” someone yells. “Fuck yeah!” echoes across the pool among other shouts. More splashing and half-clothed college kids jump in, turning my normally calm haven of a pool into a frothy mess.

The DJ raises the speaker volume, a heavy bass that shakes me. Screamo. Not my favorite. The vein in my forehead seems to pulse to the same beat.

“Amazing right?” Persephone turns and shouts to me, though I’m only a few steps away. “They just fell in, staring at each other!”

“Amazing is a generous adjective to describe them,” I say. When she glares up at me with a teasing smile, I wish I’d kept my mouth shut. I don't see the best in people. My experience gave me different expectations. I give her the same courtesy smile I gave Zeus, because I don’t want her to know how much I hate it here. I feel out of place, like I vibrate to a different frequency than everyone else.

Someone calls her name, and she turns with a grin and a wave. Artemis, I think. The music gets louder. I take a steadying breath. 1-2 inhale and a longer exhale. Gods, these parties are the worst. Noise, noise, noise. I’ve always felt adrift and awkward, unsure who to talk to or who would want to talk to me. And if they do, do they only want to use me for my family name?

A dozen worries converge at once.

Persephone will see what a loser I am. My brother is getting married. What is Hera up to? Minthe nearly bit my head off before storming away. I have a new section of lab students I need to email Monday. The music. Gods, why is the music so damn loud?

Persephone moves a step closer. Her body sways, head bouncing to the climax of the song. She’s enjoying herself, so beaming and bright. The sight of her makes my heart pound, then strangely enough, wither. She fits in here, and I would hate to stand in her way.

“We’ll be family soon, huh?”

I blink and shake my head. Did I hear that right?

She snaps her fingers and claps her hands together, a nervous gesture I know well. “Oh Gaia, why am I so weird? It was supposed to be a joke. My aunt is marrying your brother. I guess he’ll be like my uncle or something, making you my what? Unc-”

“No.” My hands fly up and shake erratically. “No, no, no, no.”

She giggles and rushes me, hugging around my middle and resting her cheek against my chest. We both burst out laughing, stupid and uncontrolled.

“Not your uncle. Fates, no.”

The sound of her laughter and that terrible joke makes me laugh until I can’t breathe. With big shaking breaths, we both eventually calm down. The awkwardness of it all isn’t even embarrassing with her.

She’s tucked against me, one arm looped around my back. The fingers of her other hand pat my chest and trace the buttons. My nipples respond on cue, tightening to attention. Her casual touch feels as right as it does foreign.

“You didn’t congratulate your brother on the engagement,” she says but doesn’t look up, tracing around the seams of my pocket. “You don’t approve of Hera? She’s the bad guy?”

“It sounds unfair when you say it that way.” I hold her tighter and toy with a glossy curling end of her hair, entranced by the dainty blue flowers interwoven in the two buns at the top. “It’s true that I’m uneasy. My brother has a habit of taking the lead in our family, even though he’s the youngest, and… I don’t always trust his judgement with women, even less so with Hera, no offense.”

“I understand.” Her shining, liquid eyes turn to me, and I want to believe anything she says. “I don’t know your brother, but the one truth I know about Hera is that she cares about her family more than anything. And if they marry and he treats her right, he’d be family too. If that means anything to you.”

“It does.”

I wonder if Persephone is right. Our family bonds feel like smoke compared to the tight-knit dynamic of Metis and her daughters. My brothers and I have a shared trauma from childhood, running from our murderous father, but we don’t really know each other, having grown up hidden in separate realms. Zeus is ruled by gut instinct unlike me with endless calculations and reasons to put off a big decision for another day. I’m sure I’ve got _failure-to-launch_ tattooed on my forehead as far as my family and subjects are concerned. Can I begrudge Zeus and Hera for not holding back?

“Perhaps I've been unfair. Your aunt is the same age as my brother, yet I think of him as a child and not her. I probably think of myself the same way.”

“Pfffft!” She makes a silly sound with her lips. “Me too! We are still kids in a way, and what’s wrong with that? I can’t imagine getting married this young! It’s college. We should be having fun.”

“For an immortal being…” I shake my head in laughter. “Yeah, it’s a big decision.”

“But it’s their decision.”

“You’re right,” I say. Zeus is infatuated with Hera, but is it love between them? Doubtful. Attraction combined with a lust for power on both sides no doubt. I wouldn’t marry unless the love is real and deep, unless it’s forever. Maybe there’s a hopeless romantic under all my nihilism. “I’m the oldest of my brothers, but I’ve always felt left behind, especially in social situations.”

“Talk about left behind, I grew up on a rural estate with nothing but farmhands for friends. But you know what’s cool about leaning into your inner child?” She waggles her eyebrows at me and I shake my head. “Kids always know exactly what they want!”

 _What do I want?_ Dive into my research. Invest in reviving the Underworld. Get to know Persephone better.

“What do you want?” I ask her, searching her face for a clue. She’s brilliant, vibrant, and capable of anything.

“Pizza!” She tickles me and breaks away. Pausing, she looks back over her shoulder and holds a hand out. I grab it before she changes her mind.

In the shallow end of the pool, Poseidon has a Neired’s tail wrapped around him. He watches Zeus with a confused squint. When his gaze falls to me, his eyes widen, head cocking to the side. He sticks his tongue out on a lazy smile. I shrug, a little nervous, but feeling lighter than ever. There’s a fragile bubble of hope expanding in my chest as this tiny, pink woman drags me to the snack table.

Persephone chows down on some plain cheese pizza. I ate earlier and fiddle with the multi-colored condoms and lube in the nearby bowl. It was thoughtful of Ares to include such precautions. When I realize Persephone’s gone quiet, I look up and realize what I’m doing. My face floods with heat and I drop the foil packets I’d been rubbing between my fingers.

She gulps down her food and grimaces. “I want to be honest with you.”

My chest squeezes. This can’t be good. “Okay.”

“I hooked up with Ares a couple days ago.” Her fingers twist together, lashes shaking as she blinks, her eyes looking everywhere but at me.

“You want him?” My blood runs cold.

“We’re friends.” She steps closer. “It was a heat of the moment kind of thing. I just wanted you to know that while I’m not some innocent little girl, I am, technically I guess, a virgin. I like you. A lot. And sometimes my flirtiness can get away with me, but honestly, I don’t really know what I’m doing.”

“Neither do I.” I grab her hands because I can’t stand to see them trembling. “I’m a one woman kind of guy though, so if you want Ares, I-”

“No. Not like that. We talked it out.” She interlaces her fingers with mine and steps into me again, looking up as the heat of her body fuses against me. “I didn’t really date back at home. We were pretty isolated, and now that I’m here - college, Olympus - I want time to figure out what I want to do and who I want to be. But…” She brings my knuckles to her lips. My mind whirs, but nothing makes sense. What does she want? I would help her make it happen, even if it’s not me. “There is one thing I know I want, right now.”

I don’t dare breathe, giving her the space she needs to finish her thought, afraid to hope.

“You.”

Her mouth forms an _O_. The word is little more than a gust of air. Me?

She bites her lip. “I-if you’ll have m-”

“Yes.” I grab the back of her neck and move to pull down into a kiss, to show her with my body since my mind and mouth can’t seem to communicate effectively.

Aphrodite and Ares choose that moment to roll out of the pool and stagger toward us. I move to shield Persephone with my body from all their needless, sloppy dripping. So much water. It’s getting everywhere.

Ares shakes his head like a dog, and I growl back, baring my teeth. He just laughs.

“Cuz!!! You’re looking loved up!” He grabs a handful of foil packets and stuffs them in my pocket, making the tablecloth and my slacks soggy in the process. “Safe sex is great sex!”

Hopping on one foot, he tugs off his combat boots and throws them to the side. Aphrodite pulls his pants off as he tears off his shirt. She squeaks in delight when he rips her mini dress straight down the middle with a comic roar, letting the tattered fabric flop to a messy, wet heap with the rest of the clothes. They snap together like magnets. Their noses trail over each other’s neck and cheeks and collarbone, naked except for her string bikini and his swim team briefs.

I cough, loudly.

They break apart.

“You talk to Hephaestus yet?” Aphrodite asks me.

“He’s not here. I’ll arrange a meeting with him then bring you in to chat social media if it goes well,” I say, watching the skin around Ares’ eyes grow redder. They may be a mess, but Aphrodite can keep her shit together for business, and that’s what I needed to talk to her about earlier. I want to invest in production for Hephaestus’ inventions - smart watches and other tech that could become augmented reality devices. The raw material can be mined in the Underworld, so it would be a great opportunity to diversify the economy. “For the jingle idea, I thought we could loop in the Muses or Apollo.”

“Not Apollo!” Aphrodite’s visage darkens, eyes glowing with white-hot rage.

“The Muses then.” I nod. PR is her gig. “I like that shitty sun god as much as the next person.”

“That reminds me, baby.” The love goddess turns to Ares and nibbles at his jawline. “I need you to do something for me.”

“Anything.” The dopiest smile crosses his face, eyes heating with the promise of some dastardly task.

“Beat up Apollo, please.”

“Got it.” With a kiss on her cheek, Ares turns to survey the crowd.

“What! Why?” Persephone grabs his arm and turns to Aphrodite. “Sure, Apollo can be a weirdo with uh... shifty eyes, but he’s my roommate’s brother.”

Aphrodite puts her hands on her hips with an indignant lean. “He copied one of my private cam sessions and posted it online. To add salt to the wound, he overlaid the whole thing with his shitty cover of _Wonderwall_.”

The news about Apollo doesn’t surprise me one bit. He’s a total creep.

“Gross.” Ares shakes his head with disgust. “No one likes porn with music.”

“Exactly! Thank you!” Aphrodite raises her hands to the sky. “An out of tune keytar too...blech. Think about my brand, baby.”

“Lemme at him…”

Persephone sputters and looks at me, but I just shrug and tighten my hold around her waist. She places her hand over mine, interlacing our fingers again. Gods, that feels intimate and more erotic than hand holding should be. I will keep my cool. I will not make a fool of myself.

“Is that really necessary?” she asks Aphrodite.

The scantily clad purple goddess rolls her eyes and ignores Persephone, watching Ares prowl through the crowd. A devious smile splits across her face.

Apollo is easy to find, flitting from one group to the next, disregarded by most who know him. He’s as irritating and energy sucking as a buzzing mosquito. The only people who pay him any mind are social climbers and gossips.

The three of us watch Ares wrench Apollo around by the shoulders. Without warning, he pops him once in the nose. Gold ichor gushes down his stupid face. Ares’ hands fly to his neck in a viper fast choke.

The music stalls. Everything grows quiet as Ares shouts, spittle flying, “Don’t fucking fuck with Aphrodite. You don’t look at her, don’t like her posts, and you sure as shit don’t pirate her content. If I see you breathe in her direction again, you’re toast. Ya hear me?”

Still in a chokehold, Apollo gasps for breath. His skin grows darker from lack of oxygen.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Ares pushes Apollo into a thorny rose bush. Ouch.

“Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!” The crowd chants. Aphrodite raises her fist to join in.

As soon as Ares turns around, smiling in amusement at the shouting, a blur of purple lands on his back with a battle cry.

“Is that...” Persephone trails off.

“Artemis,” I say. “Yes. She’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”

“B-b-but…”

The shouts grow louder and looking back, I see the melee has multiplied like an infectious disease. Athena defends her brother. Hermes backs up Apollo. Even Eros and Dionysus join in, laughing as they duck punches and shove anyone who comes close just for the fun of it.

Persephone looks to Aphrodite. “That’s just... It’s so... messy.”

The goddess of love sighs wistfully. “I know.”

She loops her hair around one finger. Ares turns and stops, catching sight of her. A dangerous, feline smirk grows as he fights the crowd in her direction. Hermes tackles him from behind, and they are lost in the sea of bodies again.

“Smell ya later, little flower.” Aphrodite waves her fingers at Persephone and starts a slow saunter toward the fight.

“Pssh! She… what?” Persephone sputters, bristling.

“I think she likes you. You do smell very nice.” I chuckle and lean down, whispering in her ear, “Wanna get out of here?”

She straightens my collar, like she’s not even thinking about it, like it’s an instinct to put things right. “I think that’s for the best.”

I snap my fingers, calling on my Helm of Darkness. I press the cool metal against her shoulder, so it makes contact with both her and me. Her chest flattens against my stomach as she gazes up at me.

Our skin shimmers, and I see through her form to the water beyond. An inflatable koozie with a plastic cup of beer floats in the space her pretty face is. “We’re invisible now.”

“Oh!” Her gaze tracks over my face and shoulder. She extends her arm to inspect it. “No one can see us? Truly?”

I nod, knowing she can see me. We are the only two in the universe as far as I’m concerned. “I’ll take you anywhere you want to go.”

She looks sideways and winces at another crash. Probably a champagne bottle. All these parties happen the same - polite socializing and making out followed by fights and dancing that usually end in various forms of public sex.

“Somewhere quiet,” she says.

I smile as another clue whispers that this is the woman for me.

 _Quiet_. We fizz in a shower of sparkles as my mind charts a course to the place I could always find peace. 

It’s morning here and cold. The sky is a mix of blue becoming purple becoming pink. We’re on a tall crag overlooking a fjord more than a thousand feet high. Picture-perfect grey mountains stand sentinel in the distance and several inlets snake out to the North Sea. Even though the wind isn’t biting today, Persephone shivers and snuggles closer. I pop the collar on her jacket and drop us to a seat so our feet dangle off the edge. She leans her cheek against my shoulder, looking out at the sunrise.

“Too cold?”

“No.” She blinks and surveys the scenery. “It’s so strange here, and… early morning?”

“We’re in the mortal realm of those who worship the Norse.” I catalog the familiar terrain, noting the only differences are the change in season. Hints of green and swaths of color peek out of an otherwise white and grey landscape. The mountains though, they always look the same. Silver, snow capped, like eternal guardians of a realm that sheltered me well. It’s what I like about being here. Predictable and timeless. The wind is strong and unstoppable right off the cliff face. There’s something fortifying about sitting still when a sea breeze tries to push you somewhere else, as if even a boy could say, _“No. I’m standing my ground.”_

“My mother lives nearby,” I say. “But this is where I sat as a kid, trying to quiet my mind.”

“It’s beautiful.” Her chin perches on my shoulder, looking up at me. “I had a similar spot I went to at the end of a long day - a red treehouse Mama made me in an apple tree. It was the tallest spot around, at the top of a hill.”

“I know the place. I visited once for a university semester abroad.” It was a barely concealed plot of grandfather’s so my brothers and I could tour the realms. I remember the spot she mentions and have no doubt that Demeter hid Persephone away during our visit.

Still invisible, we shift. The space between spaces is more mental than physical, and I anchor her body to me with a firm hold. I remember the tree and cherry red treehouse, and as I remember, we make our way.

Fading onto a wooden platform, I settle my bulky frame on a thick branch and let her drop to a seat between my legs. The worn plank floor is an open air perch at the top of her treehouse. I keep the helm in my hand against her so we remain invisible. The wooden structure groans and creaks as I move, but it’s sturdy enough.

A young shepherd nearby looks up at the sound before being distracted by his flock.

“Bacchus gave birth.” Persephone points to the animals below.

“Bacchus?” The name is strange but familiar.

“Baaaaaacchus,” she bleats like a sheep, and we both dissolve into laughter. “She was pregnant when I left, but there’s two lanky little kids following her now.”

We watch the flock move in concert like they’re a single, large organism instead of dozens of individuals. One insistently head butts the shepherd in the side. He has a soft spot for the little monster, handing it apple slices until it trots off. The swarm of bleating creatures wanders to a stream and dips their heads to drink. When the boy settles down in the shade, Persephone speaks again.

“The light’s not the same.” She rubs a leaf between her fingers, making a shadow on the floorboard between her legs. “I used to come here in the afternoon before our last meal. It was just for an hour or so, the only time I had alone. But the light is different that time of day, dappled shadows everywhere.”

When she looks at me, tears shine in her eyes. One rolls down her translucent skin like a falling star. I want to touch her but don’t. She seems so fragile all of a sudden.

“You miss it here,” I say.

“I swore I wouldn’t.” She lets the leaf loose on the wind, and we both watch it dance and fall. “But it’s all so strange. The goat, the cast of the light. Everything looks almost the same, but...”

“Nothing’s changed here, except you.” I place a hand on her shoulder. “You’re different.”

Her eyes plead with me to make sense of it. I trace fingertips over one brow then the next, pushing an errant curl behind her ear. “I am, aren’t I?” she says.

“There’s nothing wrong with changing.” _You taught me that,_ I want to tell her, but it seems too serious for the moment, too self-absorbed.

“You know where I really wanna go?”

“Where?”

“Somewhere I can see the stars. Like your skin right now.” She grabs my half-visible hand and traces the hard edge of a nail following a comet’s path. My skin is always in its primal state when I’m invisible. Her fascination and careful attention to that one, innocent part of my body has my body reacting, but my mind stuttering. She wants to see the stars, I remind myself.

I pull her up into my arms again, and we shift to the shores of Oceanus. The Underworld.

It’s another favorite place of mine, but one I’ve never shared with anyone else. The cool air and rich, loamy scent of the earth comfort me. I take off my helm, flicking it back to its hiding space with a snap of my fingers. There’s nothing to hide from here.

Wind whistles around us, shaking the tall, black poplars. Leafless branches twist and dance, back lit by a vast midnight sky. Stars twinkle all around, promising a place beyond what we know.

We walk hand in hand down the dark forest path, ducking around the weeping arms of a willow. Her hand reaches out to grab a long, swaying branch.

“Willows are home to the mourning cloak butterfly, and their flowers attract bees.”

“Hmm, I’ve never seen them here,” I say. Her steps pause, and she runs her hand down the long line of leaves, dark green in the perpetual twilight.

“Promise not to be freaked out?” she asks.

I squeeze her hand in reassurance. She lets go of me and fists both hands in front of her. When her fingers unfurl, a dark butterfly with yellow-tipped wings lifts antennas to the sky, and a half dozen bees crawl across her other palm. She pushes them up, and they twist in flight around the draping branches. She looks over at me and wipes her hands on her jacket before stuffing them in her pocket. “Weird, right?”

“If you’re weird, what does that make me?” I whisper an old spell my mother taught me. While I had an innate talent for greeting gems and rocks as a child, she helped me learn to make little friends when I was feeling lonely. A pale green, Luna moth sparkles onto my fingertips.

Persephone brings her nose up to its feathery antenna, but her eyes find mine. “You’re just like me.”

“Just like you.” My voice catches with emotion. The moth flies to join its newborn friends. Persephone ducks her head on a smile, and I loop my arm over her shoulder, pulling us back on the path. “You wanted to see the stars. They’re just up ahead.”

The treeline ends at the top of a grassy hill. Dirt gives way to pebbles, and soon the land turns rocky and wet. A beach of fine, obsidian pebbles serves as a dark frame for the real show - a star-dappled, indigo sky and the glittering water mirroring it.

“You know what I thought the first time I saw your bio-luminescent fish and bugs in class?” she asks, looking at the inky expanse. “They looked like living stars.”

“There are many stories about the stars. As a kid, it was hard to know what was real,” I say. “Perhaps that’s why I like science.”

“The stories are real if they mean something to you. In the mortal realm, there are folk tales about the stars. Most revolve around the gods.” She glances up at me. “But they’re really more about them than us, don’t you think?”

“I do.” I look at the dipper and the seven sisters and the holy tree. _The stories are real if they mean something._ “You think we’ll be up there someday?” My heart catches in my throat. _We, we, we. You said WE, doofus._

“Maybe,” she whispers. Twisting, she floats up to eye level with me. Her warm hands capture my face, and her lips fall to me.

The sensation is so sweet and unexpected; I groan and band my arms around her. She makes me dream of eternity and the stars and philosophy, but then I’m crashing back into my body and it’s a welcome reprieve. This means something too. Just embracing the moment and not thinking so damn much.

Her tongue slicks over my lips, and I open to let her in. The hunger I have belongs not only to me. It’s something we share, as hard as it is to believe. She wants me too. Her hands tangle in my hair and the longer we kiss, the more I make sense of her taste. A hint of sugar, a warm rain, and something honeyed. There’s so much to know, so much to explore with her.

 _Maybe_ , she said. The uncertainty of it is a challenge to make every moment with her count. I want a string of memories that one day, if we’re lucky, will become a story of our own.

Gasping, she pulls back and looks over my shoulder with an amused tilt to her glossy, kiss-swollen lips. Her flower crown grows wild, twice as many blooms as before. Is that... are they glowing? She smiles wider and twists out of my embrace, flying behind me.

“There’s something in there, Hades!” she calls over her shoulder, heading for the black, yawning mouth of a cave.

I chase her, thrilled. I know this place well and the darkness doesn’t scare me. There’s nothing dangerous in there. As I enter the cave, I navigate it by memory. Rounding the last corner, my personal research facility comes into view, but what does it look like to her?

Her back is to me, and the curving, delicate frame of her body is lit from behind by a glowing pool of water. Thousands of fireflies wink in the air, illuminating the frozen stalactite that drip from the ceiling.

“It’s magical!” Her voice echoes, surrounding me like she’s under my skin. She flicks her long hair over a shoulder on a sly glance back. “You’re a caveman. Who knew?”

She’s so flirtatious, I would have crawled to her on my knees if she’d demanded. Instead, my feet follow, silent on the mossy rocks.

“It’s my research.” I kick off my shoes and roll up my pants to sit next to her, letting the fish nibble at my toes. “This is overflow storage for the extra specimens I didn’t need. I never had the heart to eliminate them.”

She gives me a teasing smile. “Some God of the Dead you are!”

“Hey, keep your voice down.” I give her a mock stern look. “I’ve got a fearsome reputation to maintain.”

She laughs and plops into my lap, sliding her fingers into my hair. I close my eyes, swallowing the pleased growl that bubbles up. Her nails scratch at my scalp, and my body lights up in response.

“I want to show you something,” she says. Even quiet, her voice bounces off the rock walls around us.

Reluctantly, I open my eyes.

There she is, a vision of magenta skin, lit by the dancing, golden reflection of fireflies and a softer glow from the bio-luminescent marine life below. She watches me with a secret behind her eyes.

“Show me, goddess.”

She bites her lip on a smile and pulls a pink flower from her hair, spidery roots and all, laying her hand flat against the rock wall. Breathing deep, she hums a lilting tune. It’s simple and clear, with no discernible words. The flower under her fingers glows bright and multiplies. Green vines, lit from within, crawl across the wall, slipping into cracks I’d never known were there. More pink and white flowers bloom everywhere, a bright explosion. Their neon shade gives a sharp, warmer light to the cave. Everything brightens as she sings her wordless song.

I let out a surprised exhale against her cheek. When she looks at me again, dozens of hot pink butterflies pop to life, swirling in the surrounding air. My skin tingles, numb or oversensitive, I can’t tell. I’m dumbstruck. The weight and heat of her body hold me down. Her unique floral musk is everywhere. The way her face brightens not just from the growing light everywhere, but her proud smile.

Glowing petals lengthen from thousands of flowers. Ivy climbs up the wet walls and drips from the ceiling with barely a whisper. There is no noise. This is silent growth.

“H-how?” A stunned question is all I have. “How is this possible?”

“Chloroplasts are the workhorse of the plant. Normally, they need photons to function, but I engineered the DNA a little.” She wiggles her magical little fingers at me. “The plants have the same luciferase that’s a key component of your squids and fireflies.”

I blink slowly. Bio-luminescent plants are a breakthrough of epic proportions.

“There’s no one like you. So fucking brilliant!” My voice rises, and I cradle her head in both hands, afraid for the tiniest moment that she’s a dream. “Was there ever a more perfect woman?”

She giggles. “So you think I’ll get an _A_ with my new lab TA?”

“I think… I think you could change the world with this.” My eyes dart around us. “This could light the streets and sidewalks in the Underworld.”

“I’d like that.” She kisses the palm of my hand. “But don’t tell Hera or the contract will be back with lawyers for renegotiation.”

I mimic zipping my lips up, still blinking in wonder at the plants that sparkle and drip from the ceiling.

“How did you do it?”

“Well, I explained the science of it, helped no doubt by my godly mojo, but it’s simpler than science.” She slips her fingers back into my hair, toying with it as she stares at me. “I learned from you. In a way, I borrowed your light.”

“My light?” My whisper is hoarse. A tight, powerful feeling constricts my chest. She presses closer. Observing every part of my face, her delicate fingers trace my brows, my nose, my cheekbones, and even my chin. She is small, substantial, and solid, but there is more to us than these physical forms. A spark. A fine, intangible thread ties us together, tugging her to me. We share interests. Our temperaments align. And still we are more.

“There’s something big between us, or am I crazy?” she asks.

“You’re not crazy.” My blood sings for her. Then my throat clenches, insecurity clawing its way up. “You’re free and fearless. I just don’t know what you see in me.”

“Everything.” She kisses the tip of my nose. “Actually, you remind me of a poem I read once.” Her sweet sincerity is almost too much. My body winds tighter, attuned to her every word. “ _All things by immortal power. Near or far, to each other linked are. You cannot stir a flower without troubling a star._ ”

If I don’t kiss her, I’ll die. True death, says the tight fist that shakes in my chest. I need her more than breath. Leaning in, my lips barely brush hers when she shoots out of my lap.

Kicking out of her tall shoes, she peels off her jacket. With her back to me, the rasp of her skirt zipper trailing down gives me goosebumps. She gives me a daring look over her shoulder and rolls her thigh highs off, placing them on top of her other clothes. The mesh shirt is discarded next. Her skin gleams, bright in the flickering, firefly light. Turning back, she puts her hands on her hips, looming over me in only a pale pink bikini.

“Well?”

I shake my head. “Huh?”

“Take off your pants and shirt,” she says with an arched eyebrow. “I want to see you. Touch you.”

I may be slow, but I’m not dumb. I do as instructed in a haze of disbelief at her insistence. If she’s taking control, I really don’t think I have the strength to say no.

When I’ve got nothing but my tight swimsuit on, she settles back on my lap. Her hands run over my shoulders, down my sides, and up my chest. Only small scraps of fabric separate her warm softness from the cool, hard lines of my body. When her hips scoot closer and she rocks against me, all my nerve endings light up. Tingles scatter across my body. I’m primed and ready for anything, but what I crave is to taste her luminous skin. I push the strap of her triangle bikini top off her shoulder and press my lips in small pecks from her collarbone up to the back of her ear. She hums and clutches my neck tighter.

“You still have the condom?” Her voice shakes, and I can’t believe what she’s saying.

“We can take this slow, Persephone. I can wait.” I’m the definition of _just-happy-to-be-here._

“I don’t want to go slow.” Her hands move faster over her body, like touching more of me will reassure her of something. “I feel ridiculous for being a virgin, and I want you. Is it bad that I just want it to be over?”

I sigh and try to tone down my enthusiasm.

“It’s bad, isn’t it?” She grimaces.

“You aren’t bad for feeling that way. Virginity is a lot of pressure, for you and me. I can’t do it if I know you’re gritting your teeth though. I want you to want me, need me.”

“I… I do feel that way for you.” She’s nervous, but not lying, not with that sweet, earnest face.

I fish around in my pockets and pull out the packets that Ares stuffed in there.

She chuckles. “Ares is a good friend, you know.”

“He has his moments.” I send silent thanks to the cocky bastard. I guess in terms of safe sex, he had the right idea. I bite the lube between my teeth, mumbling around it. “I could touch you, and we can see where it goes from there.”

“Okay.” Her voice is airy and light but her gaze seems searching, almost unsure. “Wait a second.” I freeze. She picked the plastic packet out of my teeth and continues on an exhale, “I guess I am a little nervous. Would you… would you mind if I touched you instead?”

I grunt. My cock aches for her touch, but I need to be sure. “This... We can take it slow. You’re not obligated or anything.”

“I know that, silly.” She sidles closer. “I want this. My hands on you. Your hands on me. Is-” She searches me closely, the start of anxiety in her furrowed brow. “Is that okay for you? D-do _you_ want to wait?”

“Fuck no.” I grab her by the neck and pull her mouth to mine. I just need a drugging, deep kiss to settle my nerves. Maybe this is moving fast, for me too, but it feels so right.

Breaking away, she presses light kisses on both cheeks. “Eager boy. I like it.” The confident, seductive look on her face falters as she struggles with the plastic packet of lube. “Can you…?” She fumbles the packet, and it nearly falls out of her hand. I grab and tear it open with sharpened teeth, flashing her a smile I hope isn’t too terrifying. She giggles and snatches it back from me. “Eager and dangerous. Was there ever a more perfect man?”

Her big beautiful lips curve up as she covers her fingers with the wet, goopy substance, then she glances down and grimaces. “I guess you'll have to take it out. I warned you I'm not very experienced.”

“I like you just the way you are.” I kiss her forehead. “Up on your knees.”

She moves, and I tug my tight swim brief down, blushing and self conscious at how hard and thick I am already. When she settles back to a wide-legged seat on my upper thighs, she grabs me in a firm, commanding grip.

“Nnngh.” I fidget to test her strength, and she holds me tight even as her eyes dart over my face.

“Is this… is this okay?”

I groan. “More than okay.”

“Better firmer or soft?” Her grip changes tension, and her fingers dance up my length, fanning over the sensitive head. The lube makes everything so fucking smooth. Her touch is incredible.

“Everything you do feels good. Don't think so much.”

Her wide smile makes my heart skip a beat. “Whoever thought Hades would be the one telling me not to overthink something?”

With first one hand then two at once, she works me up and down, her gaze flitting from my straining cock up to my face like she can’t decide which is better. As her speed increases, rotating both hands, I latch my hand over hers to stop her.

“I'm... I'm about to come.” I bite my top lip hard and stare at the dark wall full of flowers. With a hard squeeze and several quick breaths, I gain control again.

Her grip loosens. “You don't want to?”

“Just that it's kind of messy. We don't have to.” I want her to have pleasure too, and if I come all over the place, it’ll be a whole production to clean up.

She chews on her lip, looks at my cock, looks back at my face, then down again and grabs another foil packet. This time, she rips into it easily using her teeth. With an adorably scrunched brow, she rolls the condom on me in five seconds flat.

“H-how did you do it so fast?”

“Bananas in sex-ed. I'm a fast learner. You know that.” She's blushing, bright and starry-eyed. “I want to keep going with you. I…I want to go all the way.”

“We don't-” I start to say, but she cuts me off.

“I know we don't have to, but I want to.” She unties one side of her bikini bottoms, and the fabric falls aside. Dark pink curls cover the top of her mound, and my mouth waters. “Will you touch me? I want to make sure sure I’m ready.”

One of her hands falls to her center, and she begins touching herself. What man or god in any universe could refuse her? I slide the palm of my hand over the back of hers, interlacing my fingers in the gap. Wiggling and stroking, I navigate her flesh, wanting to know every secret part of her.

“You're already so wet.” My voice is deep and strained.

She sighs but says nothing. Her eyelids flutter as our fingers move together, but it’s me leading now. Her hand slides up my wrist to grip my forearm.

“You like my hand on you?” I rub her clit for a moment before sliding down and circling the edge of her slick, hot opening. “You want my fingers inside you?”

She nods, a shudder wracking her as I press my middle finger just inside. She moves to a small, stuttering rhythm, and I take time to just watch her, see what she likes. My thumb presses down on her clit. A nip at her chin. Soft words of praise. I bet that’s what she likes.

“So sexy. Nothing more beautiful. What a lovely little body.”

When I slip a second finder inside, she rubs her entire body against me, gasping at my ear in nonsensical mewls. Her body moves on instinct, knowing exactly what she wants. She grips my shoulders and rotates my fingers further inside of her, deeper. My free hand roams over her curving, sweet flesh, hefting and grasping each breast, fingers scraping up her spine and down her rounded backside. Giving to her is enough for me, even as hard as I am. I yearn for her pleasure, and I’m willing to wait. I want to remember her just like this, store it away forever, the sight of her dripping and unfurling, just for me.

She growls and bumps her forehead against mine. “You're playing with me.”

“Of course I am. This is supposed to be fun.”

“Oh Gaia, it is. It’s so fun and so strange, but so stinking frustrating.” She kisses me in a hot, frenzied tangle of tongues. “I want you now. Is that okay?”

“Whatever you want.” I mean it. We could stop now, and I’d call myself blessed, but more? I’m hers to command. I pull my fingers from her body even though they clench, resisting my retreat. When I suck them into my mouth, she blinks in shock.

Panting, her firm grip finds my cock again. She squirts the rest of the lube packet onto me and tugs. Her focused, almost rough treatment of my dick has me harder than ever.

She rises over me, and I can only watch her face. I need to know she's doing okay. I'm afraid to touch her, to show any sign of coercion, but I lay one hand on her hip, the other at her jaw to hold her for several chaste, light kisses.

“You’re perfect, you know that?” I say.

“No, you.” She bites and sucks my thumb into her mouth, slowly sinking her body down as she holds my cock by the root. The first time, she wiggles and presses, but misses and my dick slips free. Stopping to reposition, she works herself down again. Her body is so wet and ready for me, my cock misses the mark again, instead sliding up into the wet, tickling furrow of her heat. She huffs, irritated. “I'm not doing this right.”

“You're doing fine. It's always a little awkward the first time.” I thrust up, using my grip on her hips to move her against me, trying to give a little friction to her clit. “Let’s do it together. Hold yourself open for me.”

She nods and watches me, her eyes at half mast. With one hand, she opens her pussy lips, and I catch a glimpse of her hidden flesh, ripe and dark and glistening. I grab my hard length in one hand and her hip in the other and rub the thick head against her clit once more before sliding it further back.

There she is. Her eyes widen as my cock finds its home, that blessed entry. I put the tiniest pressure on her hips to press down. She wiggles and sinks a little, panting as she holds herself open and stares down. Gods, what a sight. I move the hand grasping my cock up and rub lightly at the engorged little button of flesh, made so much more erotic since she’s holding herself open for me, watching each pass and circle of my thumb. She breathes in ragged gasps as she works herself up and down the tip.

“Gods, you're amazing. Doing so good… feel like… fuuuuuck.” My jaw clenches with restrained need. “Are you okay?”

She nods and circles slightly, the nails of her free hand biting into my shoulder.

“You're taking me so good, sweet one.” A flash of heat lights up my body at my own rumbling words of praise, and her nipples harden to tight points. My hand moves to her breasts and I heft the weight of them, smoothing over her flesh, grabbing and scraping blunt fingernails along the tips. Sweetness. From the first time she waltzed into my life with a blinding smile, that’s what she was. Her sweet spirit blazes through my skin, past my rib cage, and settles in my lungs.I’m gasping in short breaths just for her. “Look at how beautiful you are. Perfect. I'll never forget this moment. Do you feel good too?”

“It feels so…” Her soft, lust-filled eyes rise to mine. “... strange. A little weird but not in a bad way, just a new way. I think it’ll feel good in a minute.”

She moves slightly out, before pressing back down on a shuddering sigh. “Oh, that’s better.”

I growl to stop from thrusting up.

“Tell me how you feel Hades.”

“Tight. Electric. Nothing has ever felt this good. Nothing has ever looked this good.” I nip at her lips, my nose tracing over her ear. “Tasted this good. Smelled this good. The way you feel and look and taste and smell… There are no words. I feel honored, as dumb as that may sound.”

She hums and presses all the way down with a small choking sound as she lands at the base of my cock, eyes blinking and full of emotion. “Oh gods. I feel so full.”

“Hmmm.” I tremble and clutch around her lower back to contain myself. Our foreheads lean together. I have almost no control, worried I could blow at any moment.

Her hand slides down my chest, fingers rubbing over my nipples. My dick twitches inside her as she moves up and down in short exploratory movements.

“Still good for you?” She blinks slowly, and I’m touched that she's thinking about me. “I feel like my body must be strangling you.”

“In the absolute best way, believe me. If anything I’m trying not to finish too quickly. You’re okay?”

“Stop worrying so much about me, mister.” She pats my chest, moving up and down in several quick thrusts. “I'm the one on top doing all the work. I can take care of myself.”

With a low grumble, I grip her rounded backside and pull her closer, biting along her shoulder. I just let her move, let her use me in any way she wants, trying to focus on keeping the climax tingling in the base of my spine at bay. I need her with me when I come, so I slide a hand down between us to rub at her clit and talk to her again. She seems to love the talking. I pitch my voice low, hoarse with need.

“Your body is incredible, taking me so deep. You like me splitting you open like this?”

She gasps and moves faster.

“I love being buried inside you, so close I can feel your heartbeat.” I grab her throat lightly and rub my thumb over her pulse so I can feel the rapid thump of it. My other thumb presses harder in a rocking glide over her swollen clit. “Is this pretty body ready to come for me? I want to feel you grip me.”

She groans and rocks faster pulling her knees higher so she presses deeper.

“That's right. You’re taking me so good, all of me for yourself, for your pleasure. Are you ready to give it back to me now?” She watches me with eyes full of fire, a true passion I’ve never seen before. All for me. “I want to see you come. Look at me when you come for me.”

“Hades.” She swallows and sighs again. “I-I-I don't-”

“Shhhhh,” I cut her off and help her move faster. “Follow what your body feels. Look at me. Show me what you can do.”

She kisses me in a tangle of tongues, bouncing faster and riding me to a brutal tempo. Arching back, she exhales to the ceiling - rough, hard sounds. I work her clit to take her over the edge. She's just there.

“Fuck yes. So beautiful. Come for me. Give it to me.”

Her mouth starts an H-sound, but it’s not my name. A ragged, wild cry shakes out. A riot of clenching sensations set off, inside and out. Her knees lock around me, and her core pulses fast.

I thrust up deep and pant in quick measured breaths, chest heaving with exertion. My hands clutch her lower back, grinding her body down. She could never be close enough. Everything about her consumes and envelopes me. In only moments, my limbs seize, and I come for her. My dick throbs as she clenches me from within. What a gift, that she would share her body with me.

When the blood rushing in my head quiets a fraction, I open my eyes to find her watching me. Her goofy smile looks pleased, and her hair is an utter wreck, fluffed out and tangled. Dozens of flowers litter her curls, grown longer than I've ever seen.

We catch our breath, stock still and embedded together. It was like I’d never really seen her before. She sees the best in everything, including me. But there’s so much more to her. I wonder how many mundane revelations lay before us.

“Well…” she starts. I suck and bite at her bottom lip and her inner walls squeeze me, lighter now, in the aftershock of her release. She sighs at my lips. “That was something.”

I chuckle and lean back on both hands, forcing myself to give her space. “We got in a groove by the end though, didn't we?”

“Gods, I would say so.” Her smile pinches to one side with surprising shyness. “And anyway, thank you for this.”

“It’s nothing.” I mentally shout at myself. “It’s not nothing, mean, it was a pleasure. Happy to.” I stop myself from saying, _happy to be here...proud to serve_. Talk about sticking your foot in your mouth.

“I know virginity is a social construct or whatever, but… it still feels like a whole thing. And… it meant something to me.”

My heart grows ten sizes and I restrain myself from launching into some weird promise of matrimony and half my empire. “It meant a lot to me too.”

She runs a hand down my chest and wiggles experimentally. “Okay here goes.” She extricates herself from my lap with a small wince as my sensitive cock flops against my stomach.

“What do we do with…” She gestures towards the condom.

I unroll and tie it, stuffing it in my discarded pants pocket. “Don't worry about it. No muss no fuss.”

She stands and rights her bikini top, retying her bottom together too. After a quick stretch, she reaches out a hand to me. I clamber to my feet and pull up my swim briefs.

“You feel okay?” Gently, I brush some hair behind her ear. She shivers and closes her eyes on a smile.

“I may walk a little funny, but maybe we could swim instead.”

She slides into the pool of glowing water. The bio-luminescent squid retreat from her entry, but rainbow colored minnows swirl around her feet.

“It’s like swimming in the night sky, but the stars are alive.” She walks further in, lit from below in a glowing blueish light. Dropping, she disappears underwater, and I ease in behind her. The pool is crisp with a pungent but pleasant smell, and my fingers trail through the water as I walk to her. The fish swirl around in a dizzying dance. When she comes up for air, she spins to face me. Her eyes look even bigger with wet hair. Dozens of petals washed out of her tresses, glowing and spinning in the water around us. She smooths a hand down my neck and chest, eyes at half mast. “Your skin. Will you show it to me again?”

It shocks me she could find me attractive when I look so much like my father. It always frightened others. With her, everything is flipped with her in the best of ways. I step back and shift to my primal form. My skin darkens and distant galaxies blink to life along my arms and chest. My vision turns rosy, and I know my eyes have a red, misty haze.

She watches me with unconcealed wonder. I sit back on a small rock shelf so we’re eye to eye. Her abundant, wet breasts jut out of the water, criminally beautiful as her nipples poke through the flimsy swim top. I reach for her hand underwater. Three green and yellow minnows illuminate her arm. As the fireflies twist around us, shadows move over the elegant curve of her neck and collarbone.

Slinking closer, she takes my hand. Her fingers find my face, tracing up my jawline and down the center of my throat. “Why don’t you show this form all day every day? You’re breathtaking.”

She doesn’t know? I swallow past the emotion clogging my throat, joy at her assessment but darker, painful memories want to come out.

“My father. He looked much the same.”

“Oh.” Her lips purse before she rambles on. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I’d heard stories of him but never saw photographs or TV. I grew up kinda sheltered from everything. Mama didn’t tell me a lot about Olympus.”

“You’re lucky.” The tabloids followed Kronos’ failed rebellion against our grandfather and dogged pursuit of his sons, even after my brothers and I returned to Olympus. Thankfully, the hot seat of infamy moved along to the Egyptian pantheon’s exploits soon after. “Sometimes I worry my memories running from him, terrified for years, will eat me alive. Do you think things like that can define a person forever?”

“Not define, no.” She shakes her head, eyes growing misty. “Did it affect you? Of course, but you define your life. Every day you have new choices, and only you can make them.”

I raise her fingers to my lips and try to soak in her surety, her strength of belief. She climbs into my lap and presses her slick body against mine.

“You quiet my mind,” I say, kissing the pads of her fingers. It’s true. With her in her my arms, anywhere near me, the whispers of doubt and the incessant worries are harder to hear. She doesn’t only represent renewal to mortals and the rest of the deathless gods. She’s the living embodiment of a second chance to me too.

“Funny...” She laughs and blue, glowing flowers sprout anew in her wet hair, almost like a crown. “Because being with you makes me a little crazy, Hades.” Her expression sobers. “I want to promise things, think long term, even though I’m not really ready for that yet.”

The eager, yearning part of my soul warms to know she’s as affected by me as I am her, but we both need to hold back a little from grand promises. I know what she wants. She told me before. _I can’t imagine getting married this young! It’s college. We should be having fun_. I smirk and play along. “You just want to have fun, Persephone?”

“Yeah, I do.” Her agile body softens against me, and my palm slides down the dramatic curves of her back, her waist, and her bountiful ass. She whispers at my lips. “I want to be good. I want to be bad. I just want to learn to be me. Do you want to have a little fun with me, Hades?”

“Yeah.” It’s all I can say, even though my heart bursts with so much more - dreams of the future with her, of millennia, of the possibilities. But she’s right. We are young, and there is no time to worry about the future when the now to enjoy is just at our fingertips.

“You know where I’d like to be right now? Promise not to get mad?”

I study her with curiosity. “I said I’d take you anywhere earlier, and I meant it. Where?”

Her hands trace over the lines of my pectorals. “Exactly where we’re supposed to be. Back at that mess of a party.”

I smile. Of course. “Take a deep breath, little goddess.”

I slide out from under her, inhale all the way to the bottom of my lungs, and dive under the water. Neon-bright marine life makes way for me.

At the bottom of the deep end, I turn back in her direction. My arms rotate in fast circles, pushing up, to keep myself underwater. I can just make out her watercolor magenta form when I hear the dull thud of her diving down. Her siren shape comes slowly into focus, closer and closer until she grasps me with her legs and arms like an octopus.

My mind maps a new destination, and the water blurs, slowly brightening. The glowing fish and dark cave fade away. We float in a new place, the sea a vibrant, deep shade of turquoise.

Gargantuan whales circle us, singing low tunes of welcome. A giant bubble escapes Persephone’s mouth as she squeaks in shock. Her eyes widen when a young whale calf, ten times my size, glides right past us. Her hand reaches out, brushing the end of its tail. As her eyes flash back to me, the turquoise water shimmers to light grey-blue.

Everything turns cold. She pokes a white shift of ice just above us, and it splinters with a satisfying _krrrrck_. Morning sun filters through the jigsaw pieces of ice flow in dramatic shadows and shafts of light. Her luminous eyes watch a long, thin boat slice through the water just above us.

Time is running out though, so I navigate to the next place. Everything turns dark again, accented by flashes of light above us. The pool’s orderly gridded lines surround us. The last time I swam here for my evening laps, I could swear I was a different person.

Persephone looks up to the water’s surface, and smile lines crease at her eyes. She tracks the ephemeral, wispy movement of party goers, turning at the muffled splash of someone in the crowded, shallow end.

Her slow blinking gaze falls back to me, overlarge underwater. Little air pockets stick to her skin, sliding up her face, eager to find the surface and be set free. This is another moment I want to remember forever. A moment where we are both exactly where we need to be.

Her lips crash into mine. Like any beautiful, living thing, she needs oxygen and kisses. I’ll give her that and so much more. Our tongues are sinuous creatures with minds and wants of their own, desiring a tangled show of dominance and exploration.

Every heartbeat is in the moment. Our bodies come together in a song as old as time itself. She grabs my neck with both hands. I can almost hear the violins on an urgent, fast trilling note. The french horns blast full volume. The lights and crowd spin in the background as we kick and turn together. The crescendo is only a moment away. The electronic beat above pushes out sound to the pace of my pulse. Our oxygen runs low, but we have more time. Only a moment more.

Neon lights flash over her face as she kisses me, eyes closed. Tight curled lashes. Hungry sliding lips. I need more from her. More time. More of these blessed stolen breaths. Anything is possible in moments like this. I can chart my own future instead of waiting for signs. I have everything in front of me.

We kiss in a hidden place at the god of war’s raging party with frantic, pulsing, rainbow lights and an overloud techno beat. Her smiling lips curve against mine and more bubbles break for the surface. We hold on to each other and when my lungs squeeze for oxygen, I know it’s time to head back to the real world.

My feet push against the cement bottom of the pool, and we break the surface with a shared gasp. As the circular wave of water shatters around us, a dozen heads swivel in our direction.

She wipes her face and loops an arm around my neck, pulling forward so we’re closer than ever, her face nuzzled in the crook of my neck. Her fingers twirl in my hair.

“Cool trick!” Ares shouts a greeting. Aphrodite sits on one shoulder with a different woman on the other.

“I know!” Persephone twists around and pats my cheek. “He’s pretty amazing!”

“Where'd you guys get off to?”

Persephone looks at me and we both laugh. She yells over her shoulder, “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

My brothers and most of the rest of my family mill around in the shallow end. Zeus and Hera drink champagne with just their feet dangling in. Poseidon and the Neired play chicken with Hermes and Eros. The rest of the crowd is as rowdy as every, falling over each other, shouting and laughing. If it was me, I’d fade away again, so it’s just Persephone and me somewhere quiet and cool. But she wanted to come back here, and we have time enough together tomorrow. And the next day. A seaside brunch. I’ll introduce her to my mutts. We can go shopping or watch period dramas on the couch.

We have time, so much time ahead of us. She's becoming who she wants to be and so am I - not a god and goddess with designs for changing the fabric of the universe, but two lovers at a party clinging to love’s first blush.

“Having fun?” She tugs the hair at the nape of my neck so I’m looking at her again.

 _Fun?_ I nod, still lost in thought and not in a bad way. Her simple expectation of us - to have fun and be young - isn’t a disappointment. It’s a relief. I take things too seriously. I need to figure out my own life. In the meantime, she and I will take things as they come. We’ll explore, enjoy each other, and be impulsive. Life has rarely been that for me, and I realize how much I’m learning from her already.

New plans don’t twist my guts anymore though. Everything is changing, but none of that defines me or holds me back. I define my life, and every day the world is new.

I kiss her square on the mouth, fierce and claiming, and swallow her gasp of surprise.

The future is still a mystery but for the first time, the unknown excites me.

**Image is a gift from[Josybro](https://www.instagram.com/josybro/)**

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading to the end! I tried to make a love triangle and first-time experience that was at least moderately emotionally healthy, haha. Would love to your know your thoughts now that you've read the whole thing! If you like my stuff, subscribe here on AO3 or find me on [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/mythisamirror/) or [Twitter](https://twitter.com/mythisamirror).
> 
> Important disclaimer: The characters and world utilized in this are all property of Rachel Smythe. Any similarity between this fan fiction and Lore Olympus is due to common source material, in the form of Greek myths, or pure coincidence. This is a love letter to Rachel Smythe's body of work, and she retains all rights to the characters and world.


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